


Doll

by AevumAce



Category: Little Witch Academia
Genre: Action, Angst and Tragedy, Black Comedy, Drama, F/F, Fantasy, Murder Mystery, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Psychological Horror, Rivals, Romance, Supernatural Elements, serial killer au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-17
Updated: 2019-02-17
Packaged: 2019-05-08 02:07:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Underage
Chapters: 40
Words: 149,208
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14684202
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AevumAce/pseuds/AevumAce
Summary: Protecting Akko was Sucy's wish, and she would do anything... even if it meant turning to black magic.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This AU is drastically different from those which I've written (which means they can be OOC) but there will still be some elements from the LWA lore that I will still follow. So this is basically Serial Killer Sucy vs Detective Diana.

Her heartbeat became palpable. With her senses heightening and hairs all over her standing, making her a bit scared of what's going to happen next. Figuring that it would be best not to stay in a closed space, she shoved the doll inside her bag once more, hid the needle back inside her pen and stormed out of the stall of the girl's lavatory, leaving any baffled girls on the way.

It has come to her attention that the baffled people on the corridor were not the cause of her stampede but because of a certain chaos out in the school's storage gym.

In the commotion, she grabbed whoever was within her reach. "You, what happened?"

The girl cowered. Her big glasses stood out, she has orange curly hairs that she kept short, reaching her ears. She might not reach the beauty standards to boys, but she's definitely pretty with that look of a girl who spends her time nose buried in books. "S-someone died out there."

"Who?"

Four eyes cringed and went pale, so she decided to leave her and dashed headfirst towards the commotion. She reached the courtyard near the benches. There were sensitive people backing away. Various whispers threatened to overwhelm everyone surrounding the area.

"Is it the work of school shootings?" a short girl with seemingly onion shaped hair asked the Indian twins who stood next to her.

"This isn't a work of a gun!" One twin said, and she and her sister towered over there short companion.

"It's a crime of passion then?" the short girl said.

"There could be a serial killer roaming the school grounds." The other twin said as she and her sister wrapped their protective arms around the small girl.

She wove her way through spaces in the crowd; her eyes graced the presence of a dead boy.

A dead Thomas Kinsley—with three stabs each in the head, the stomach, and the heart.

At the sight of him, a menacing smile crept up to her face, but she quickly changed her facial expression into a startle. She saw Akko, bent onto her knees, a meter away from him. She somewhat had a bottle of water she's been gripping onto as tears fell to her cheeks, frozen from terror.

"Make way! Make way!" Wangari, the president of the Newspaper club, arrived with a microphone with a cardboard that says 'LNN' tapped to it. Her club mates were beside her. The camera girl and the writer girl whose names still completely elude her. "This is it, girls. Today marks history and a revival of the Newspaper club!"

Somebody just died and that the Newspaper Club's priorities are sorted that way. Probably Thomas' death was something students are unaffected about.

"The headmistress's here!" Someone shouted and cleared the way when the authoritative old lady and a group of professors arrived to do their investigation, probably preparing everyone for a lockdown while they wait for the ambulance and police to arrive.

Akko caught a glimpse of her and ran to her like a cowering child. "Sucy! S-Sucy, s-someone killed him. I was with him a couple of minutes ago and he ordered me to get him some water, I came back to this!"

The Japanese girl was a mess of faucet tears, even her ponytail that held most of her bangs were unraveled.

Sucy didn't mind the mess she's doing to her uniform for she completely understood her shock. She might not like Thomas very much for he liked to bully her around—but Akko is an angel.

She's too innocent to the gruesome sight she and it will forever haunt her that she saw the dead body of a person who was alive minutes ago.

* * *

 ** _Sucy remembered_**  feeling annoyed earlier that morning. Arriving to school was the most unsettling thing ever for Luna Nova Academy was past its prime during the Golden Age of its glory. Now, it was such a small school with few students and it meant that everyone knows everyone and news get circulated fast. That's why the Newspaper club's in shambles. No matter what they do to save it, there's just no need for a school newspaper here.

When she reached the hallways, everyone's always talking about everyone. Even the janitors, the teachers, the lunch lady and for now, the buzzing topic is how yesterday, her secret was revealed. An undisclosed revelation the moment her contact lens fell and the whole school saw her eyes.

"Mushroom eyed freak," they would all whisper behind her back.

She wore contact lenses to hide the fact her pupils' shaped like an outline of mushrooms.

Sucy spent her time ignoring them. She arrived at her locker and fumbled through the combination. She was taking her books for the morning period when could hear footfalls walking towards her.

"SUCY!" A high pitched voice yelled enthusiastically in the morning.

"Akko," Sucy greeted back. Turning sideways, she saw the bubbly Japanese exchange girl—who was what she as close to a best friend—wearing bunny ears. Sucy forgot what she was doing when she spotted that. "What's up with that?"

"It's with a bunny costume dress!" Akko said in a silvery voice. "I can't wear the whole costume to school, you know." She said, arranging the hat on her head.

"Well, it's ridiculous." She said, bluntly.

"Oh Sucy, you're always straightforward. One of the things I like most about you." She removed her silly hair band with rabbit ears and placed it in her locker which was luckily next to Sucy's. "Hey, have you heard the news?"

"What news?"

Akko inched sideways closer and used her hand to cover the other side of her mouth. "You know, that bully who's always out to humiliate other kids—Thomas and his boy trophies?"

"What about that wimp?"

"They got caught stealing some liquor and since Thomas is the chief's son and a minor, he was just let off with a warning."

"What?" Sucy rasped. "You mean the gossips were something else than about us school losers?"

"Why yes, your contact lens accident was yesterday's news."

"So, I guess you found leverage to piss him and his bunch of hooligans off?"

"Yes of course," Akko admitted, her eyes shining with unbridled determination. "I can keep on fighting them back; I keep spare clothes in case they'd ruin my clothes again—with tomatoes."

"That sounds like you keep on losing despite your determination to show them off."

"Well... I at least I tried! I don't want to be that coward who gives into fear of not doing it and stand for up to yourself!"

"There's a fine line between bravery and recklessness _."_ Sucy rolled her eyes. "Why won't you let me report it to the student council or the teachers?"

"What? And be subjected to more bullying? I prefer not to!"

"Hey losers!"

Sucy's eyes crossed at the arrival of a few interveners. Despite being a freshman, Thomas had gained a following from all year levels, the other guys all stood around him, making it seem that they are untouchable rebels. But honestly, he pisses his pants whenever the Student Council president is present.

Sucy was pretty sure Thomas likes the Student Council president similar to a boring drama plot of a Japanese anime Akko made her watch.

Thomas looked like he just smoked before heading to school and sprayed loads of earthly cologne all over him. Even if he did all that, Sucy can smell a hint of nicotine on him.

"Girls, could you all be nice and sweet to treat us to lunch?" he said, striking up a conversation with them.

Akko's face showed she had an internal panic. "You're assuming I have enough money."

"What did you say?" Thomas' voice rose higher and some of his lackeys began cracking their fingers and other kinds of stuff of intimidation. "Are you sassing me?"

"Umm..." Akko pursed her lips, knowing what lies ahead of her fate if she goes against them.

It was ironic to think that Thomas is a troublemaker, despite the fact that his father was the Sergeant of Blytonbury—he supervised Constables and is training to become a Detective. But then again, privilege kids tend to be the most troublesome.

Akko looked at Sucy, horror reflecting from her eyes, mentally asking her for help.

Sucy found herself put on a spot. Weighing the fact on how she could help this time. Even if her friendship with Akko started out weirdly, Akko was the first one in a decade to ever see the real her without judging.

Three years ago, when they were freshmen, they were doing a group project in Akko's home. Akko was kind to her, even if she used Akko as a guinea pig in her experiments. Even Akko's guardian was kind to her and invited Sucy to stay for the night.

From that then on, Sucy told Akko the truth. The reason why poisons are special to her, why mushrooms were her favorite, and that she showed her what her eyes really looked like. Not because she needed to remove her contacts, but because she wanted to show Akko and that she trusts her.

That was the most joyful decision that Sucy did. From then on, they both got real close.

Sucy deeply cared for her, even if she would roast the Japanese girl every now and then or she would send her to a test of chemical reactions. So she rattled her brains and got a quick comeback. "This is a strange situation to engage in gluttony, Thomas Kinsley."

Thomas bared his teeth, slowly inching his square jaw near Sucy's face, wearing his menacing mask, "Well I'm sorry, bitch. It's not my fault that we have to experience hunger."

"Spoken like a true jerk." Sucy retorted causing Thomas' eyes to got bloodshot red and grabbed her by the jaw. "You are a true Sodomite."

"I don't like the way you talk." He growled.

"I'm genuinely surprised you know what Sodomite means."

To her surprise, Sucy's jaw unhinged forcefully. He was pressing his fingers hard and it hurt badly. Clenching, to ease the pain, Sucy found her jaw suddenly unable to close.

"Stop it! Let go of her!" Akko pulled him away from Sucy.

"It takes a sinner to know one, sinner!" Thomas was beyond pissed, his followers all watched from the sidelines as they all cheered on him. He sneered at the fact that Sucy was struggling with a forceful locked jaw.

Then when she successfully closed it without any complications, her vision blurred and her hearing dimmed, Sucy found herself losing consciousness but managed to stay awake when her senses sharpened as the sole focus of her attention was on a single hair fall out of his head when Akko pulled his locks.

And now Akko's voice of talking some sense to him was evident. Thomas' lackeys were on guard, ready to jump in if Thomas says the word, but he didn't.

He raised his finger at her. "You bitch, what if I pull your hair! How would that feel?" Then he pointed at Sucy. "This is not over!" he flipped them off then left with his cronies.

Few people had witnessed the fight and were scared to even help any of them. So they sighed in relief when it was over.

"Are you okay?" Akko asked, tears threatening to fall in her eyes. She was inspecting Sucy's cheeks.

"I'm okay." Sucy took a lungful of air. "That was the worst locked jaw I ever had."

Akko giggled a bit. A sparkle of relief featured in the shine of her bright eyes.

Sucy once more caught sight of Thomas' hair strand on the floor.

" _Take it... take it..."_ the voice cooed. An ominous voice said from inside her bag.  _"I trust you will find my capabilities fascinating."_

"Shut it," Sucy exasperated. "I don't care if no one else hears you. I don't want to talk to you."

" _But you do feel it, do you?"_ the voice continued.  _"Your blood sings for retribution. Pick it up and use the power I behold."_

The temptation was unbearable.

Sucy hated Thomas. He was loud, unbearable and he makes everyone feel shit. He fed on their weaknesses. Getting rid of him was one less person to be scared about. So maybe it was worth it.

* * *

 ** _The rest_**  of the day went with grim reminders of the fact that we learned that Thomas Kinsley died as if a stake was hammered into his chest.

The whole student body was on probation. They weren't allowed to leave the premises but the classes didn't resume. It was as if the whole place was in a lockdown. As the students wait for the case to come close, people can't help but gossip. Sucy can't help but hear ludicrous theories—like Thomas Kinsley was just at the wrong place at the wrong time—that Thomas Kinsley was killed by his lackeys—that Thomas Kinsley faked his own death so he could leave the country—but none as crazy as the truth.

All the while, Sucy had a prickling sensation in her neck in all corners, so she tried to remain her neck it up high. The single thought that she might have been the reason for his demise could only mean one thing.

" _You're a killer."_

"Sucy!"

She wondered what light was left in her heart.

"SUCY MANBAVARAN!" It was rare for Akko yell out her whole name. So her attention shifted to her jolly best friend.

"What is it, Akko?"

"You seem quiet." She made a bunched up face. "You look paler than usual... almost gray. Are you okay?"

"I'm okay." Sucy smiled weakly, "Just shock."

"I know it's quite a scare." Akko tried to brush off her worries. Her outburst finished and now she's somehow unperturbed, but Sucy knew she was still shaken off.

"Akko," Sucy landed her hand on top of the shorter girl's shoulder. "Don't feel bad for what happened. It's not your fault."

Akko clenched her fists tighter; she had gone stiff as a board. She was detained for about two hours, asking her as the sole witness and possible suspect until she was let off the list.

Sucy's heartbeat was pumping hard in her chest. Akko needed her. Sucy needed her to calm her down too. But Akko doesn't know anything—about her—about an ancestral doll—or what really happened.

" _Stay calm."_

She heard the doll whispering in her head again.

" _Stay collected."_ Said the voice that persuaded her to kill him.

Then Sucy's morning flashed in her mind like a broken projector. Horribly remembering that she brought the voodoo doll with her to school, Sucy was sweating like waterfalls, and that she needed to get away.

"Umm... Akko, I think I need to go to the bathroom." She mustered with a voice in an octave.

"Oh," Akko raised an eyebrow, observing her. "Sure. I'm certain you need to go alone?"

" _You love her."_

A slow smile plastered on her face and went to the ladies' room amidst the tension. She hid in the farthest cubicle and rummaged her bag.

" _Love could be water or toxic. What will she be?"_

"She was there for me when nobody else was."

" _You're so jittery."_ The voice said as soon as Sucy found the doll hiding inside her bag. " _You should lay off the caffeine."_

"I killed him, didn't I? B-but I didn't! It... It was a coincidence!"

" _Whatever it takes for you to feel better about the murder."_

"How could I know such sorcery to kill?"

" _You followed the instructions."_

"I didn't know it could kill!" Sucy shouted, forgetting that I'm still inside the comfort room. "I thought it was just you know, punching him in the chest."

" _No spell is that harmless. You hammered him in his heart."_

Sucy clenched her jaw as if her jaw was linked to Thomas. But this time it was to control her rising temper. She could feel the guilt eating its way to live in her stomach.

" _I thought you hated him, Sucy."_

"I did! But not like that!"

The doll looked at Sucy with her buttoned eyes. It was weird that Sucy can see the doll's emotion similar to a piteous look emanating from the buttons.

" _I am your companion, Sucy. Only you alone can hear me. I alone can see through you. Your eyes, a window to your soul... you thought you showed your friend the real you, but you are mistaken. Your heart is dark like the abyss and nothing like a void. I can see your deepest desires. You want revenge. You want revenge to all those who rejected you, those all who harmed you, those who left you. Or you don't want revenge at all?"_

For a minute there, her voice was so sultry and honeyed. Sucy can feel something hypnotizing in her revelation.

Sucy could imagine the doll's cross-stitched lips sneer sinisterly. It was disturbing at first, but now it was her truth. She gasped for breath every time she exerts herself of the heavy truth such as this was her new normal.

To accept everything in, to take everything in, and to breathe more oxygen to her brain even if the smell in the cubicle was less pleasant. A sneer that reflected the doll's crawled its way to her face. "You're right. This is my gift. I should use it to my heart's content."

Sucy didn't know that her life was starting to be revolving around strands of hairs.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Happened before the occurrences of Chapter 1. A little Sucy backstory.

"No one wants her, what do we do with her?" 

That stupidly sums up the existence of her life.

She has been rejected since she was an infant. The police found her crib on its doorstep with a bottle of poison around her neck. She hadn't understood it clearly, but she can tell that her biological parents didn't want her so they disowned her. Yet the fact that her so-called mother left her to the police was questionable.

Try as they might and search for her family, with the bottle of poison as a clue, no one could trace it back. Her parents might as well vanish into thin air.

So the police had no choice but to leave her in the orphanage. Under the care of the Mother Superior, the Matron of the Orphanage in Capiz, Philippines. As years went by, no one would adopt her. Potential couples would cringe every time she's been in adoption interviews because of her uncanny personalities and weird inclination towards mushrooms.

That has been it for years.

Partially it's because of her extremely rare eyes. It was the color of anger, of love, of danger and of life. Red eyes were thought to be an omen of a demon before.

When she got older, life got harder for her—harder for a teenager to get adopted. She tried so hard to disregard them, but she can't. She had grown to hate in her eyes, she even wore brown contacts just to hide them. It may have lessened scrutiny but still, but wasn't enough. But then in time, she learned how to accept them.

Sucy had still not belonged. Even if the Sisters of the Convent treat her well, she can tell they don't understand her. There wasn't enough budget for a proper therapist and psychiatrist. Most kids bully her because she was different, but she doesn't even care. She always resorted to fighting back using her mushroom and poison pranks—One of the reasons why her certificate of good moral was nonexistent.

Until she reached the age of 16, she wanted to leave.

"I think I know what to do with her." Mother Kathryn had watched her grow and refused to let her leave until she reached adulthood. A minor without any money or a place to live was a serious offense to Mother Kathryn's calling. So instead, she asked her sister, who was a doctor to help Sucy find a place to stay and pay rent a few months before she can live on her own.

Mother Kathryn's sister was situated in London, and thanks to connections. She was able to get there. With a shady dealing, Dr. Adams became her legal guardian until she will reach 18. But her guardian couldn’t care less about her. Because of that, Sucy lives in a terrace flat alone. 15 minutes away from Dr. Adams for both rather live away from each other and now a high school senior and a part-time worker in a flower shop.

Gradually, on nights like this, without Akko to pester her, Sucy tasted salt. Quickly, she dabbed her handkerchief in her eyes. After realizing that she has been crying and broken down, she looked at the sky at midnight high. Few cars passed by.

Dr. Adams was the opposite of Mother Kathryn. Although it was a shady adoption, the woman still discarded Sucy like a gum stuck on her shoe once she turned 18.

All her life, Sucy knew she was cursed. Everywhere she went was bad luck. Dr. Adams never failed to remind her every day that ever since she adopted her, only because out of pity, her business became less fortunate than usual. And Sucy's pretty sure the orphanage had the time of their lives when she was finally sent away.

Her co-workers and her boss at the flower shop all wanted to get rid of her too, but the fact that they were intimidated by Dr. Adams to keep her there, they have no more say in the matter.

People are assholes anyway.

But she was still crying. Maybe, just maybe it was because she longed to be wanted. Someone who can accept her into their lives forever, she knew she would always be welcomed to the home of the Kagari family in Japan but she doesn't want to trouble them with her bad luck.

She was afraid that Akko wouldn't want part of her life anymore so Sucy kept her safe distance.

Sucy was bored of her life. It was all the same in a stupid circle. High school is stupid. It makes the brain fuzzy instead of helping it broaden. The only thing it broadens was anxiety.

She was losing all her care in the world if it weren't for Akko—the only sunshine in her hell.

Walking was one of Sucy's oldest methods of coping. There was just something about the continuous movement that kept her thoughts linear and brain from combusting. She was now walking down the pavement back to her flat.

It was a chilly night. The wind blew her hair into her face. An ominous feeling crept up her spine. Clouds covered the moon and the stars as the rain began to drizzle down.

"Crap," Sucy quickly covered her head and ran. She let out an irritated sigh, finding herself drastically drenched from the pour. On the bright side, the rain helped wash every pain.

A flash of white caught her eye. There are no wild animals in a park. Then suddenly Sucy heard footsteps and grunted noises. Now she was shivering from, not only the cold rain but from fear.

The only light was from the street lamp ahead, and the night was beginning to become eerie as hell.

"Who's there?" she asked startled, reaching for her stun gun in her pocket.

Nothing but the pitter-patter of rain responded. Sucy shrugged it off as she began to think her imagination playing tricks on her and turned back towards the streets.

Still no cars, yet she could feel someone watching her intently. It was maddening.

Despite being surrounded by darkness in a poorly lit street, she noticed something besides the pathway. It was a box, carefully wrapped in a see-through plastic. It was an ordinary box, but she found herself curious.

It was neither too big nor too small, but it's a size where she could grab it, place under her coat and run. There wasn't a name or a stamp on it. There was no one or any vehicle around to may have seemed they dropped it.

Sucy could blame every invisible force in the universe or every intrusive thought that plagued her mind. Whatever it was inside of it was calling her.

Pocketing the stun gun back, a habit she developed when she's out and alone, she took the box. Returning home, like no one's business that she took the squared shape with her.

* * *

 _ **Fresh and**_  fragrant after a shower, she was too lazy to blow dry her hair. She caught the sight of the wet box through the reflection of her long mirror.

For a moment, Sucy forgot that she brought it with her. So she quickly dressed in on her pajamas and took a cutter from inside her drawer. That was there for another purpose asides from cutting in which she stopped, due to Akko's constant plea when she learned of it.

Sucy's blood throttled louder in her ears, sitting on her bed and cautiously cut through the scotch tape. She gasped upon opening it for she saw a cute little voodoo doll. It was ordinary, no yarns for hair, but it has a bit of hay and a bit of cotton inside it. It has two red buttons for eyes and a white yarn was cross stitched for its mouth. Along with it, Sucy saw other pieces of equipment used for cursing and enchantment such as needles, hammers even vials of strange liquids, and an old book with tattered leather covers and pages that felt like onion skin.

There was, however, an empty shape where something should be. The package was missing a vial.

The particular decoration of vial interested Sucy. She quickly grabbed the locket around her neck that she kept under her clothes and stared at the small bottle of poison her mother left for her when she was found in the police doors.

"H-how?" she couldn't believe it.

Sucy removed the bottle from the chain and placed it on the empty space. It fits perfectly.

The mystery has now grown with more questions rather than answers to give.

The old tome, indeed huge was nowhere as heavy as it looked. The pages were also written in two languages, Spanish and Filipino, and multiple other dialects that Sucy could somehow understand because of the minor cultural difference. The handwritings changed as she flipped the pages until the end. It was as if, those who owned the book continued to contribute meaningful information to it.

Sucy began reading.

"Voodoo is a powerful mystical practice practiced around the world. Every culture has its own version or way of conduct. The purpose for this is to bring spectacular gifts and rewards to anyone who believes in it; however, the power this doll possesses could only be used by someone of the first Philippine Witch's lineage."

"This is nonsense," Sucy said in disdain. "This is a felony. No wonder it was thrown outside. Black arts are myths propagated by the Old Church into scaring their people into submitting their life in service to them."

" _I am not nonsense."_

Sucy heard a terrifying voice. It was odd, almost a mixture of a maiden, a mother, and a matron.

In reflex, Sucy threw the doll to the wall.

She waited until something demonic happened and it did. Sucy watched in horror as the doll she threw levitated from the floor, facing her with red beady eyes. Sucy instinctively crawled backward to the headboard.

" _I am a Loa."_  The voice came from its sealed lips with a thick Southeast accent.  _"I am what you call a spirit residing in this voodoo doll. I am a companion of yours. The blood in your veins calls for me. So rich... so thick... so powerful. It must not circulate unused anymore. Rejoice, girl for your ancestor smiles on their graves for our meeting."_

"What?" Sucy grabbed a mushroom-shaped pillow, ready to throw and defend herself whenever, though she was glad that the doll was keeping a minimum distance between them for Sucy to understand the situation. "What do you mean?"

" _The box shows itself to righteous scions of my creator."_

"Stop this," Sucy said before her sanity breaks. "For all I know, you could be a remote controlled or a robot disguised as a doll."

" _You've already held me you know. Doesn't seem like I am technological, aren't I?"_

"Whatever, I think it's a nice trick. Also, your speech pattern changed."

"Would you rather me to talk like an ancient foreboding essence? I thought it would be better if there wasn't any language gap between us, Sucy."

"How'd you know my name?"

"It sings to me—your heritage. It was your birth mother who recently owned me. If you still don't believe me, why don't you test me for yourself?"

"Intriguing," I said, searching the box for the instructions in a small book. "I need a hair to cast a curse."

" _If you need time until you can gather the courage to use me, I'm very patient."_

Sucy looked back at the ancient tome. "You say you are previously owned by my birth mother. Can you tell me where she is?"

Even though it was impossible for the doll to stretch her yarn, Sucy can feel the doll smile.  _"I can't tell you. I'm bound by a contract after all. I am unable to tell about my past owners, which is why all the research you could do is by reading that book."_

Sucy glanced at the book once more. The thought of her birth mother and her handwritten thoughts suddenly became too overwhelming for her. What if, Sucy learned that her mother didn't love her at all?

After her crazy train of thoughts, Sucy mustered up the courage to flip the pages to the last and saw the intricate yet simple handwriting of a woman named Sinag.

_I've had her. My dear child, my dear Sucy, oh how beautiful her skin is, how marvelous her eyes are, how beautiful her teeth are. She took after me so well. Unfortunately, I need her gone._

Those were the last visible words written. What came next was a mishmash of blank ink that looked like someone tried to erase the next paragraph or that her mother was clumsy enough to pour coffee on the wet ink.

Sucy dropped the book to the floor; she lay down on her pillow. The revelation was too much for her. She couldn't even function well as a new batch of tears came out of her tear ducts. This time, it accompanied a new emotion for her mother—anger and hatred. Gone was the longing for a mother's embrace.

She was waiting for something to happen. Nothing did, even a sound. She could hear her anxious breathing as she slowly succumbed to another panic attack.

" _You should cry and cry then sleep."_  The voodoo doll said.  _"Sort this all out."_

"You won't kill me if I do?" Sucy asked.

" _Why would I? You are Sinag_ _'_ _s daughter. My new mistress."_

Sucy decided to trust her.

* * *

 _ **A nagging**_  feeling was seeping through her consciousness. It was like today would turn out bad—for her and the entire student body. She craned her neck, rotating it with cracks then stretched her back.

" _Rise and shine, Sucy, you wouldn't want to be late."_

Sucy got out of bed and into the bathroom. "I don't need you to remind me."

After settling on a black dress that reached the floor, it was awfully quiet then I noticed that the old book wasn't anywhere in her sight. Sucy panicked, desperately looking in all directions.

" _What are you looking for?"_

Sucy heard her from behind and gasped when she saw her floating. Somehow, she still couldn't get used to the supernatural powers.

"You startled me!" Sucy yelled, touching her heart to help it calm down. "Don't do that! Where's the book?"

" _I placed it beside your books."_

Sucy immediately went over her desk and saw it on top of her science books. She grabbed the huge book and wrapped it in a deep embrace. Despite that it brought her a painful explanation of why her mother left her, it was still her possession. It's important to her.

"Don't touch my stuff!"

" _Well, that's hard for me to do, considering I tried my best to prepare breakfast while you showered."_

"You did?" Sucy felt deranged by the idea that a voodoo doll can cook but still went to the small kitchen of her flat in curiosity.

Her jaw dropped at seeing the table filled with breakfast. Eggs, bacon, bread, salad, pancake with cranberries juice. There was gnawing in her heart that felt foreign because it hadn't been triggered for so long.

Sucy's cheeks turned pink, she slowly craned her head to the doll's direction. "Thank you... uh—umm..."

_"Refer to me as Loa. For that is what I am."_

Sucy instantly sat down in the chair and started eating. Can't help but feel a warm fuzzy sensation settle in her stomach. This was the actual first time somebody cooked for her and it tasted good. Sucy could probably probe the recipes out from the doll one day.

After eating, she shoved her beloved old book inside another spacious drawer for safekeeping until she can figure out later where she will hide it better, and grabbed her bag, ready to leave and head to school.

" _Take me with you."_  Loa cooed.

Sucy couldn't discern why she had a bad feeling about today after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since we don't know the name of Sucy's mom. I decided to become a little creative there. "Sinag" means "beam" or "light".  
> Also, I based the voodoo magic mostly on the Philippines and African myths.


	3. Chapter 3

One might think that school only got canceled for about a day, but it isn't the case, it got canceled for a week.

The moment the police came, the school had to go through the investigation. No one could leave and no one else could enter. Thomas' father was livid. He wanted to find the murderer and lock him up. As the rest of the students were told to stay in their homeroom with their respective teachers to guard them.

Everyone in the school is a suspect. Unless further investigated. But in the end, they haven't found anyone guilty because there was no witness to the crime, and the so-called murder weapon wasn't found.

The school was busy for a month after the Sergeant—Thomas' father—stopped harassing the students and faculty for his misplaced anger and priorities of his incorrect disciplinary actions when he brought up his kid.

In that week, Sucy was busy as well. Not because of the increased homework to be passed online, but because Sucy was busy collecting hairs from the rest of Thomas's rookies, even Sergeant Kinsley if he ever becomes too much of a trouble. It wasn't easy, Sucy admitted but it would be worth it.

She had a hard time particularly on this one huge guy who had a buzz cut hair. She successfully pulled a hair out of the twins from their silly man buns and this one kid who seemed to never shower or comb his hair.

Sucy's heartbeat thudded like a running prey. She woke up early that morning when it was still dark, preparing the necessary props for her next consecutive murder. She read another page in the book.

_A practitioner of the cursed voodoo arts has heightened spiritual powers and is a learned student of toxicology. With a lock of hair and a medium, the practitioner can inflict harm or even death. Nothing much can be explained why a lock of hair is essential to the process but it was a primitive belief that owning a lock of hair, or a strand, from another's head, gives power over the individual._

" _Are you just bored, Sucy? This is the fourth hair strand you will use today."_

Sucy chuckled. "Are you giving me a moral speech right now, Loa?"

" _Not at all... You are very creative in killing all of them I don't mind being treated as a toy."_

Taking the needle from the kit, Sucy wrapped her newest potential victim's hair around the doll's throat. Pointing the needle's tip to the head, she waited anxiously for the right moment.

" _Prickling will only inflict ache in the area the needle will do."_

"But it can still kill when I stab..." Sucy said, almost in a question.

" _Yes."_

Sucy waited no more. She pinched the needle into the doll's head, inflicting a headache. Next, she pricked, the stomach, and then the heart so the victim would feel as if he has a heart attack. When Sucy felt a little lighter, and a little bolder, she pushed the handle of the needle on the doll's hand and jabbed the chest part hard, deepening the steel needle, making it look like the victim committed suicide.

All people had their own obsessions that they could get high on. Everybody wanted that rush of serotonin. They crave to be in that kind of happy sugar rushed kind of feeling. Some people are addicted to drugs, some are addicted to books, some are addicted to sweets, Akko is addicted to magic tricks but Sucy... she was a psychopath. She was no psychiatrist but she was leaning more to psychopathic tendencies than sociopathic.

There was something about the act of killing that Sucy found to be addicting: the power of sensuality, the delusion of ecstatic love, and the solitude that accompanied the end of escaping boredom and bringing justice to those who dared cross her.

She placed a palm on her heart, taking note of its speed, and her breathing rising and falling rapidly and a full drawn of sobbing came next into a sense of strangulation.

Sucy's eyesight focused on the last piece of short hair she had on her kit. With a scheme she carefully crafted, she decided to spare Thomas' father as of now.

* * *

_**She woke**_  up early that day to fix some of unfinished Student Council work that the investigation rudely interrupted. Alas, nobody else was there and somehow that comforted her—until there was an unwanted companion.

"Look who's up and early." He said the moment he stood next to her.

Diana gave him a curt smile, attempting to ignore the black-haired man with piercing green eyes.

"You know, for whatever reason..." he grabbed a book full of records next to her and flipped its pages, stalling. "I'm certain you are glad that Kinsley is gone, Diana."

There was no need for pleasantries with him, given the fact that they both grew up with the same high society of London. "Oh Andrew, I might detest him, but I'm certain I didn't wish for him to be dead... just far, far away from me."

"You can't blame the poor chap. He just has a crush on you."

"And so does many unnecessary suitors." Diana retorted, prompting Andrew to give her a roguishly handsome smile that irked her but made the other girls swoon. She snapped. "I stand corrected. I do not stand by whatever I just said earlier. I'm feeling a little celebratory that he's dead."

Andrew chuckled at his heart's content. He always loved a battle of banters with her, especially when he emerged triumphantly.

"Don't let the Sergeant hear you, he's still pretty miffed about his son's homicide and you might be added to his paranoid list."

Diana crossed her arms her chest. "I doubt the local Sergeant could solve the murder of his own son, it is a classic case of conflict of interest."

"So are you suggesting they might call in the Yard for just one murder of a cop's son?"

"It's a definite possibility."

In a quiet place like the Student Council room, one couldn't expect a commotion to occur unless it's one of those Student Representatives that joined them recently—two other childhood friends of hers, Hannah and Barbara.

"DIANA!" The said girls stormed into the quiet room while pulling a rowdy short-haired redhead who made troubles for them... again. "We caught her violating the dress code while we were on hallway patrol!"

The moment the violator was placed in front of her, Diana's voice was now laced with anger, "You again?"

"Hello, President! Nice day huh?" the redhead smirked; she had a fresh bandage on her cheek. "You know, I've told you again and again too to call me, Amanda."

"Considered," Diana said smoothly, "but I won't. After citing Luna Nova Academy's handbook to you, you wouldn't even care to wear proper shoes?"

Diana was frustrated. This was the umpteenth time she chastised Amanda for her rude behavior of stealing school artifacts, numerous pranks towards the professors, and the occasional breaking of rules.

"Aww come on, I do have my school shoes in my locker. I just didn't want them to be dirty on the way here!"

Diana arched a perfect eyebrow. "Is that your excuse, Miss O'Neill?"

Amanda merely grinned, shrugging as well.

"You can do better than that," Diana said, deciding to once and for all act like she meant it. "My patience with you is thinning, and if you can't give me a better excuse, I will hand you over to the Prefect of Discipline and she will have a word with you."

The delinquent advances towards Diana and leaned forward in a daring manner. "Why not just get to it then, Princess?" she taunted.

Diana smirked, patting the American's cheek twice. "Do you seriously think, Miss O'Neill, that I will be handing you what you want on a silver platter?"

"What?" Andrew's head whipped towards them. Hannah and Barbara both had scandalous gasps, ready for a juicy gossip.

"I do my homework on every troublemaker, Miss O'Neill." Diana began, enjoying the fact that she's cornering a little wild lion. "And I know you only cause mischief as an act of rebellion to your family. My advice for you, Amanda O'Neill is to stop sucking your thumb, woman up and act like a proper heiress of your family's inheritance."

"You're a sight for sore eyes, bitch."

This was the first time in her life that Amanda has ever glared at her like that. Even Hannah and Barbara were taken aback by her uncommon outburst.

"What did you just say about Diana?" The auburn-haired ponytail girl stepped in, her hands on her hips. "Do you even know who she is, compared to you boisterous American?"

Her partner in crime, the raven long haired girl finished her thoughts. "Diana Cavendish is the heiress of a British noble family that has been one of the richest and most influential aristocratic families in England since the 16th century!"

Amanda seemed unperturbed by all that. She took a long yawn while they were explaining. "Is that all? My family ran away from the Great Irish Famine and settled in America. Guess we all can't be big shots like the British family tree."

In the midst of an ice and fire tension that clouded the room, Andrew immediately thought of a solution like a deus ex machina. "What are those?" he asked, prolonging the last words, making the others bat an eyelash while the American redhead laughed to her heart's content until she snorted.

"Ooh, Vice Prez that was a good one coming from you!" Amanda gave him finger guns. "You're killing me!"

Andrew clicked his tongue as he returned her gesture. Diana shot him a glare and he rose his chin up.

"These are just my sneakers! I will change as soon as you let me out Goddammit!"

"Miss O'Neill, language!"

"Pardon me, Diana, but as a son of proud statesmen, I understand where Miss O'Neill is coming from."

"Boom!" Amanda quickly gestured in front of Diana and proceeded to make more explosion sounds. "I win!"

"However," Andrew quickly interrupted. "Diana is also correct in that matter. You cannot simply leave the responsibility given to you. It is your birthright. Your principles with your family won't have to always align. You forge your own path but arrive at the same goal."

Amanda ground her teeth in seething anger. She placed both her hands in her skirt's pockets. "You are a tight-lipped Brit like the rest of you all here."

"Despite appearing to be callous and condescending, Diana is neither the heartless nor arrogant monster you think she is. What she does is not out of malice. She cares about the success of others and not just her own. This concern and heart of gold is the reason why she deserves to be the Student Council President."

"I appreciate the righteous indignation, Andrew. I really do." Diana said, jabbing him lightly on the ribs. "But you come it off as campaigning I fear I have to stop you there."

"You're welcome."

A long sigh escaped from Diana's throat. She was tired of having enough problems in the morning and wished one troublemaker in this school would be handled with accordingly without any harsh repercussions.

"ANDREW! ANDREW!" the double doors of the room blasted open, revealing a blond who was out of breath. His flushed and frightened demeanor could only mean a harbinger of news.

Somehow, Diana mentally cursed herself for wishful thinking.

"Calm down, Frank!" Andrew seized hold of Frank's shoulders and stared down into his face. "Watch where you're going! What happened? Why are you in such a hurry?"

"I came by as soon as I can!" Frank said, pale-faced and trembling. He was one of Andrew's best mates, and also a son of a statesman.

With his phone already in hand, he showed them recently published news on the Luna Nova Academy's official news blog, written by Wangari herself.

_Notorious bully Thomas Kinsley's death was an omen of a dark curse that plagued the lovely streets and quiet town of Blytonbury. His death haunted every waking moment of his murderers and driven them to suicide early morning September 21_ _st_ _. His murderers were none other than his so-called loyal friends. All four of them decided to end their lives consecutively in between three to five in the morning. Their suicides have brought up a lot of questions…_

"This is preposterous! Where did she get her sources?" Andrew asked once he stopped reading it out loud.

"I don't know. The girl's a snoopy one for sure!" Frank said, visibly sweating a cold one. "For all we know, she might've stolen the information when the media got a hold from the Sergeant during their interviews."

Amanda was snickering to herself. "I didn't know she had it in her."

Just by that reaction, Diana knew that Amanda was somehow responsible for Wangari's break-in. This was another predicament to deal with after the most urgent one.

Andrew inspected the legitimacy of the published news on the Luna Nova website before turning to her. "Diana, what do we do?"

Diana inhaled a lungful of air, hoping the steady stream of oxygen on her blood streams would dissipate the incoming nuisance. "The proper protocol, of course... Sensationalizing a teacher-student friendship into romance is one thing, but for Wangari to sensationalize deaths? We are going to have a word with the Headmistress and the President of the Luna Nova News Network herself."

Everyone started to wait for her to take the lead and she did. Out through the door, she cut through the crowd surrounding the hallways, which parted to let her. Her livid disposition is warning enough. And judging by the way she ordered her own detachment. With four people following her lead, she was indeed, highly ranked and well respected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Diana and company are here. Also, Appleton Academy and Luna Nova are one school in this AU so heads up! Hope you guys like it! Please tell me what you think.


	4. Chapter 4

It was a hectic week but the school still resumed on Monday with safety protocols implemented within. Akko and Sucy walked to school together that morning due to Akko's insistence.

"These are scary times, Sucy." Akko grabbed her hand. "You'd never know. Better to be prepared. We should stick together!"

Sucy's eyebrow rose, attempting to show a genuine reaction to her best friend's corny lines. Still not sure if she should don a smirk, a laugh or a stoic face. In the end, she decided against all of that.

"Don't worry," she clasped her hand. "Even if there is a murderer roaming around, I'll protect you. I won't let anyone hurt you. It's the least I could do."

Sucy was conflicted. She wasn't sure if nausea forming in her guts was because of the fact she just killed four more boys or that Akko was showing her affection.

"Aww, don't mention it, Sucy! You are my friend because I want to! But there's something bothering me about Thomas' death."

Her hands were turning clammy, and her knuckles turned white. She had to swallow the impending guilt, hoping it wouldn't rise again. "Oh? Hadn't they learned who killed him?"

"I heard that the killer is still unidentified and the murder weapon can't be found," Akko whispered. "It's a mystery, the forensics and doctors are now examining his body to find anything."

"Enough about him," Sucy said, wanting to hear no more of it. "Even in death he still irks me. What about you, Akko? Any luck on your magic tricks?"

Akko managed to persuade her parents to follow her dreams in becoming a great magician after she watched one of Shiny Chariot's worldwide tour shows.

Akko grinned proudly, her usual high energy coming back. "Why yes! Finally, I learned how to bend a spoon!"

Out of nowhere she conjured a spoon from her school uniform and held it in a way that gives the illusion of the utensil bending as she slid her hand along the handle, which took a lot of practice.

"Ta-dah!" Akko threw a little confetti up into the air, some of which got stuck in Sucy's head.

"You're still an idiot," Sucy said like she was dead from the inside.

"Well sorry, but it took me years to finally master that!" Akko said tersely, huffing as she walked faster.

"Hey, Akko!" Sucy called after her. "What happened to sticking together?"

* * *

 

" ** _I couldn't_**  believe the rest of Thomas' squad killed themselves." Akko said, carrying a tray full of different potato dishes. Her face scrunched up, apparent for her dislike in the lack of creativity in the dishes served in the predominantly English cuisine.

Morning classes went by fast for a maladaptive daydreamer duo and are currently having lunch at the school's cafeteria.

"Yeah," Sucy deadpanned. "I couldn't believe you would have the appetite to talk about dead people as we eat."

"Well, sorry for that but it's a hot topic right now," Akko said, looking at all the hushed conversations in every corner of the room.

The school was busy for a week after Sergeant Kinsley stopped harassing the students and faculty for his misplaced anger and priorities of his incorrect disciplinary actions when he brought up his kid. But the news that Wangari published threw it off of balance.

Sucy enjoyed the fact that Wangari acted like how she thought she would. It was a common knowledge that Wangari would do everything and anything to become a famous reporter and if it means getting to a story fast and delivering it to the masses, she would. Often times with a dramatic flair to reel in readers and gossipers.

"I just couldn't believe that they will all overdose themselves with heroin!" Akko said, being animated her arm movements. "What does that even mean?"

Sucy was slurping some mushroom juice until the juice box popped. She took a deep breath before saying. "Maybe it's like what Wangari said in her article. Maybe they got guilty of killing Thomas."

"But Sucy!" Akko stared at her with serious eyes. "I was with Thomas a few moments before his death. I would know if his cahoots would be in the same room with him."

"Akko, I care for you but sometimes you're an idiot. I suggest they have a modus operandi of their own to make sure they can kill him with you counting their alibis."

Sucy and Akko were met with a loud thud of books on their table. "Why hello there girls," the fumbling Professor fixed her glasses back to the bridge of her nose.

"Cha—I mean... Professor Ursula!" Akko almost slipped the secret identity of her idol.

Sucy noticed that after all these years, Akko was still a fangirl of Shiny Chariot, even managing to find her even when Chariot left the stage and assumed another identity. Reasons were left vague to Sucy but all she knew was that Professor Ursula had a long talk with Akko's parents in Japan. There was an agreement between them that Chariot would mentor Akko with magic tricks and take care of her so the legal guardianship was handled properly until Akko was 18. Yet still, the older woman served more as an older sister.

"Do the older professors still give you their jobs?" Sucy said, curtly.

Professor Ursula awkwardly laughed the stress her older co-workers are pushing onto her. "Nothing I can't easily do!"

It was supposed to be a relatively easy day for Sucy, when things go according to plan. Yet the moment the cafeteria doors burst wide open, and a thunder of footsteps from the Sergeant and a few Constables on his side stormed in, looking for a particular person and deriving an intimidating aura.

The Sergeant was identifiable at a glance. His uniform and the fact that he had the same sand color hair as Thomas was an indisputable resemblance. Thomas' father gave a contemptuous look their way and rested on Akko before making their way.

"Are you Atsuko Kagari?" his brazen mouth managed to instill fear in those who aren't even on the wrong side of the law.

"Y-yes?" Akko yelped.

The Sergeant showed his police badge. "I need you to come with me."

As if on cue the Constables beside him both grabbed Akko on the arm as if she was some sort of branded criminal. Sucy sat there, her mouth agape.

"W-wait," Akko said, squeamish, staring back and forth to the faces of authority. "Where are you taking me?"

"We will just ask some questions." The tall man said a passive tone, "For an interrogation."

"W-wait!" Professor Ursula who had been quiet for a while finally spoke her mind. "You can't take her like that! She's a foreign exchange student! Also a minor, you can't just take her and treat her like an adult! There are procedures to do this lawfully!"

Sucy stood, dawning on the fact that she made a mistake. She managed to remove all suspicions from her but she gave Akko a motive through the outsiders' eyes. All the victims so far were the people who bullied who her best friend—Akko.

Then she glared up at Thomas' father so tall, so stern, and so forbidding.

" _Now I think you are regretting you haven't killed him this morning."_ Loa chuckled mockingly.

Sucy smiled, knowing she had the upper hand in the situation, but the rising anger inside her didn't help the snarl from forming on her lips. Her fingers were suddenly itching to pull the hair of the rest of the Constables present.

Panic filled Sucy, and she would have screamed out something if Professor Ursula hadn't turned then and stretched out her arms to the laidback Filipino, grateful for the older woman's arms that drew her close. Sucy focused on Professor Ursula's arms that encircled her shoulders.

People were murmuring in shocked voices, and whispering and the food in the warming microwaves was beginning to smell burned.

The Sergeant glared at her as if he was about to yell that a meek millennial teacher wasn't the boss of him. "Where are her parents?"

"S-she's under my care." Professor Ursula said, giving Sucy one last look. "S-so I'm coming with you."

Sucy's stomach churned a bit. Even when Akko's guardian pleaded for her to stay still and quiet, Sucy wasn't up for just giving into the authority when Akko was innocent in all this.

"Taking her in?" Sucy barked before they all left, "What for?"

The Sergeant placed his hands on his hips in a brandish gesture to show everyone that he got weapons that could knock everyone out in one single misstep. "Who are you supposed to be?"

" _What are you doing?"_ Loa whispered. Yet the single question was earsplitting.

"I'm her friend!" Sucy hissed, she wasn't about to leave the ground she stood.

Everyone was listening. They had stopped what they were doing and they were all listening to the commotion, wondering if this could deteriorate into physical violence.

Thomas' father looked into her eyes in an attempt to frighten her. He then pointed an accusatory finger at Akko, who whimpered at the gesture. "It's a possibility that she's the boys' murderer. Given that she's foreign, she might have the skill to kill them. Plus she has a motive. These are all incriminating evidence."

"What are you barking about, old man?" Sucy growled. "Those are all accusations, those are not evidence. They aren't even motive for a crime since men commit more violent crimes than women according to statistics. And women are more often victims of violence than perpetrators. And besides, teenage girls wouldn't go on a killing spree just because she was bullied! If that were true, your battered wife would have had killed you years ago!"

A tempest of hot anger made Sergeant took his baton and hit Sucy by the shoulder. "Silence!"

In astonished and horrified belief, the students stared up at her and with open mouths, they choked off their cries.

"SUCY!" Akko tried to wrench herself free from the clutches that held her tight. "Don't dare hurt her!"

"Akko, stay calm," Professor Ursula hissed. "A believing heart is your magic."

It was like a magic spell. Or like a catnip to a cat. Akko calmed instantly.

Sucy was troubled when she was unexpectedly feeling scared. Wincing at the sudden pain from the blunt blow, she glared defiantly at the man who brought up Thomas. Now it wasn't a wonder why his son grew up to be such a jackass. Sucy remembered a similar situation years ago. When she was being mishandled by the authority and that she was too young to do anything.

" _Kill him."_

An eerie smile grew on her lips. All she needed to commit a murder was a hair strand and she already had it when she controlled Thomas' lackeys to steal a hair from the Sergeant's room.

"Officer!" Professor Ursula ran over to stop the Sergeant into striking her again when she effortlessly managed to disarm with her deft magician's hands. "Officer please, she's just a kid!"

Thomas' father blinked. Slowly grasping what happened in a jiffy. "Yeah so?" he managed to muster as he shook his head vigorously. "She assaulted a police officer. She's lucky I won't bring her behind bars."

Professor Ursula was flaring with an unusual fire. "But they are still children!"

Sucy never knew this side of Professor Ursula until now, probably one of the reasons why she was one of Akko's favorite people in the world. The French woman is calm and patient and quick to act in situations of danger, although she comes off as shy and timid when confronted by her superiors, she can be pretty badass whenever necessary.

The velocity and weight of her voice had finally made the Sergeant loss for words. He was too pissed to even rant more about his laws, or perhaps he forgot all about it or was apathetic in the long run. So he opted to stay quiet about it.

Sucy's heart jumped to her throat as she watched them leave the area. She wasn't about to be left behind, defeated. All sorts of scenario went through her head as she started to dash towards the Sergeant and rip his throat in an instant death when Professor Ursula threw her one last look. This time with a clear message that she shouldn't mess with an officer of the law, even supposing the certain officer of the law in question wasn't a good one.

Haltingly, Sucy did as Akko's guardian directed and stood there, petrified. Once the police officers were out of sight, the cafeteria continued with their crude whisperings to one another about Akko being the possible killer even when she possessed a clean conscience.

"Hmmph! I knew it. The murderer was that stinking little Asian brat. I do wonder how she was able to evade suspicions at first. The girl tries to be an actress so hard it's so artificial and laughable. She yowls, she wails, she even waved that bottle of water she had on her, claiming it's her alibi. I don't know quite how the police buy into her acts of distress when I don't believe in it myself."

As a human person was naturally inclined to look at the source of noise, Sucy might just direct all her anger at the snobbish looking blond guy with fringes that reached his cheeks.

He was Louis Blackwell, the son of the minister of defense, as arrogant as he is malicious.

" _You should start writing your killing list,"_ Loa suggested.

Sucy's suspicion of Loa being able to read her heart and mind got confirmed today. Louis is a kill for another day, so she began walking towards the ladies' room.

The lavatory was surprisingly clean. The janitors took the opportunity of a general cleaning in the student's week off. The mirrors were sparkling and the walls and floor were free of dirt. The most apparent thing was that there was no one in here.

Sucy locked the door from the inside and still checked the stalls. When she was certain that she was all alone in the room, she became conscious of the ventilator system that also brought sunlight in, casting an eerie light and shade to the deserted toilet.

"Loa! I need your help." Sucy grabbed the doll from its soft-hiding spot from her bag.

She was met with Loa's red button eyes, sending a cold shiver down her spine. _"I am your servant."_

"Can you do a murder without me?" Sucy hissed.  _"_ I want to clear Akko's name in a way that I wouldn't be under their radar."

" _Then you are lucky."_

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!


	5. Chapter 5

"What's this sudden fascination with a murder case?" Andrew asked.

Diana remained silent. Her lips pursed in a thought so deep that she was trying her best to tune out the man beside her.

"Would you really think that the local Sergeant or that the Scotland Yard would need help from a random 17-year old who suddenly injected herself into the case?"

Diana remained indifferent. No amount of disparagement from close friends to strangers would stop her from getting to the bottom of it. She also regretted the decision on sharing her theories with him.

"Diana, please. Think about it." Andrew exasperated. She followed the girl to her car and they were on their way to the Blytonbury Police Service. The both of them were sitting in the backseat as Diana's personal driver was set on driving the route from the Academy. "Who would share details about their case files to a 17-year old girl?"

Diana sighed. Her patience or Andrew's bothersome qualities seemingly has its limits. And here, she thought the only ones who could annoy her as much were Hannah and Barbara. "Believe it or not, the only reason I do what I do is that I want peace and order in this academy."

Andrew rolled his eyes. "For sure it is."

"As Student Council President, the Headmistress herself gave me the permission to oversee the investigation. You were there when that occurred, Andrew. Or were you just busy being fussed over by Hannah and Barbara?"

Andrew scoffed. "Oh please, I turned Miss O'Neill to the Deputy Headmistress—Professor Finnelan. The point of being in the Student Council is to be the bridge between the faculty and staff and the students. We implement rules, govern and in return, give the students what they want. Heading over to the police isn't what the students want."

Diana frowned. As if the tall young man beside her was a puzzle that needs solving. "You witnessed what happened at the cafeteria after Wangari pretty much escape our clutches for questioning."

"Yes," Andrew said tersely. "I was with you on the balcony. The Sergeant gained a stone and a quarter. His hairline is receding since last week we saw him."

"Then you should see my distress on how the authoritative figures treat one of our students poorly." The sight she had witnessed when the Blytonbury Police was being rude to a minor Asian immigrant was burned into the back of her head, forgetting was impossible. "You're observations are slipping, Andrew. He gained a stone and a half."

"I'm being courteous," Andrew said.

"Either way," Diana hated it when they stray off topics. "The Headmistress herself agreed for the cops to interrogate Miss Kagari when she was presented with the paperwork. She was still calling the poor girl's parents when the Sergeant himself went rogue and treated a minor like a dangerous criminal. I'll see to it that the cops get sued for this."

Andrew crossed his arms. "You know, you wouldn't be doing this if the Headmistress herself wasn't as old as my great-grandmother and wouldn't have asked you to manage it."

"Do not speak ill of the old, especially one like Headmistress Miranda Holbrook. There is a reason why she preferred not to handle anything with the cops."

"Is it because of the old fact that her father was an old bounty hunter pirate?"

"Yes, she preferred not to interfere for she wishes to avoid the unnecessary possibility that might shed light on her past issue. I know all about bad reputations, Andrew. You must know that. After all the years she tried to cut apart herself from her father's evil doing, it will all be for naught if I don't help her."

"I see you speak from the heart. Do you see yourself growing up in similar situations as her?" Andrew hinted at Diana's own issues but didn't push through. "Speaking of olden times, I read before that in Victorian England, attacking the police was a national pastime. Would you like to bring it back?"

"Once again, you and the point are always in parallel."

Andrew laughed heartily. "Now don't put this the wrong way, Diana. I'm all for equality and against police brutality, but who is that student anyway? Word of the mouth tells us that Thomas and his lackeys often bully her. And what does it say about the police? The fact that they are resorting to the victim of the bullies could only mean they are stuck!"

"Their incompetence couldn't be resolved to lashing out, but it's a place to start. No, I'm looking at the bigger picture. I'm doing something."

Andrew snickered. "Would a 17-year old girl be allowed onto a killer's crime scene?"

Diana rolled her eyes this time. "As you so eloquently put, Andrew, the police are resorting to interrogating the victim of the bullies which meant that they are stuck. And according to Wangari's story, although illegally taken, was credible. Her article said that the forensics found no DNA, no fingerprints, no witnesses, no broken windows or picked locks, nothing—nothing but the bodies of four teenage boys. I, for one, am convinced that whoever killed Kinsley killed his chums too."

"Oh God, Diana, please disengage right now." Andrew pleaded. "If you think there's a serial killer on the loose, as you are always right, please disengage."

"One killed himself by drinking cyanide, two killed themselves by jumping off a building, and one killed himself by stabbing." Diana recited perfectly, ignoring Andrew's attempts to inject some sense into her.

"Diana, any criminal profiling school reject knows this. Murderers constantly return to the scene of the crime and try to get themselves closer to the police to get to know the case. And it's exactly what you're doing! The delusional Sergeant might think it's you!"

"You should check yourself with a therapist; I think paranoia has gotten into you." Diana scoffed. "And please, you may try your best to persuade me to leave, but I will not be bothered by meaningless prattle. And besides, I wouldn't have to visit a crime scene. My position as Student Council President doesn't allow me to access investigation files, but a certain connection I have could be my pass."

Andrew raised a quirky eyebrow, left in the dark to wonder what Diana might have meant.

* * *

 

" ** _I was_**  hoping you'd come." Sergeant Kinsley said over the phone. "We need a new eye here. It's the same deal as before— untraceable murders. It's frustrating." He slammed the table, creating a huge noise. "Yes! I do think the suicides are murders! The boys aren't in a cult to suddenly agree to a mass suicide!"

There was a pause from him, indicating that the other side is talking.

"Oh, what do you know," Andrew said, standing beside Diana. "He is calling in the Yard."

Diana rolled her eyes at another joke from his companion.

"Oh, you would?" Sergeant Kinsley asked. "Thank you, Chief Inspector. Thank you!" He punched the telephone back to his table before returning to the people at the door of his office.

Diana was aware of Andrew's heart beating out a mad tune of panic as they waited for the Sergeant to bellow out and demand to know who they were.

"Students? Can I help you?"

"It would please us immensely if you would allow us to watch the interrogation," Diana said straight to the point without even sitting on the chairs provided for guests, omitting some key points that won't let them thrown away by the door. "I am Diana Cavendish and this is Andrew Hanbridge, despite our family names, we are here on account of the Headmistress of Luna Nova Academy."

"Are you both legal?" It was a simple question that Diana knew was going to throw her off as most adults use to justify their actions of wanting to dismiss children.

"You should be about receiving her message now." Diana simply said. Andrew gave her another narrow look, continuing to wonder.

As if on cue, a short ringtone was heard from the Sergeant's phone. He fished for it in his pocket and was genuinely startled when he read the message from an unknown number. His forehead creased after and he pinched the bridge of his nose. "Okay, you should watch from outside." He stood up and walked through the middle of the two teenagers and turned left to the interrogation room.

"What message was that?" Andrew asked.

"From my connection," Diana smirked, then staring at her phone to check the time.

"Come on, come on! I don't have all day!" the Sergeant barked.

Diana and Andrew followed the Sergeant towards the interrogation room when someone came rushing in. It was the gloomy laidback gothic girl Miss Kagari was with earlier in the cafeteria.

One of the Constable on duty seemed to have gotten a message to control the number of students storming inside. Both Diana and Andrew were permissible to enter due to Headmistress Holbrook's plea in her paperwork.

"State your business, kid!"

"I'd like to see my friend please, I'm Sucy Manbavaran. She's being held inside, I need to be with her."

"I'm sorry miss, but you have no right to get inside. She's being interrogated for murder, you are neither her family nor her lawyer, so skedaddle or wait out here!"

"WHAT?"

Diana and Andrew paid her no mind as they had been asked to watch in behind the glass of an interrogation session. And that meant observing in the other room while the Sergeant tried to get answers out of a girl they believed responsible for the death of his son and his friends which only made to look like a mass suicide.

Diana stared at the Asian girl once more. When she saw her face for the first time, hours ago, Diana was stunned. The girl was brash and loud, her loyalty to her friend was indescribable. The way her piercing crimson eyes glared at the Sergeant who hurt her friend was of a warrior Amazon, ready to do battle with the glare of her eyes.

Yet above anything else, the girl was a troublemaker. She could tell just as much. Looking through her file, Diana instantly knew that the Professors all have a hard time dealing with her. From disastrous science projects, failing marks on quizzes and even clumsiness that would often topple people on her way like a stack of dominoes.

The girl was breathtakingly unique-looking. Diana wasn't sure if she was pretty or not but the girl's flowing dark hair with a short ponytail on top of her head and the rest of it falling just above her petite waist. Diana found herself speechless by an Eastern beauty for the first time in a long time.

The Sergeant slowly stood up and walked around the table, standing behind the Asian girl. "Are you ready to talk yet?" he asked, leaning down close to her.

Miss Kagari huffed but said nothing. She was beside her guardian, Professor Ursula and an incompetent lawyer who was unfortunate to be named Yeti by his parents, maybe perhaps because he was a huge man with unusual gray pallor and whitish hair. He was fiddling with his phone, trying to be calm about the whole ordeal.

Diana scoffed at the incompetence of the law's budget for a public attorney.

"Are we sure she can speak English?" a gruff-looking plain-clothed Detective asked the Sergeant. He wasn't necessarily superior to the Sergeants, but he's a part of the Criminal Investigative Division

Sergeant Kinsley glanced at the Asian girl before replying. "She knows how to withstand the silence."

"S-she does have the right to remain silent." Yeti started, raising his hand like a school kid in class.

"Then talk on her behalf! We already gave you hours to debrief her case." The Sergeant's growl shook the low esteemed lawyer, making himself seem busy staring at documents at his disposal.

Of course, it had been more of a staring contest in the last couple of hours. Both the accused and the detective refused to say anything to each other.

It was silent for several more seconds before the Sergeant grabbing Miss Kagari around the neck and slammed her head down on the table with a loud scream. "Talk!" he demanded.

Everyone jumped at the sudden change of tactical behavior and with little time to process what occurred, no one moved.

"What's the matter with you?" the Sergeant asked, as he began to reach for his baton. "Why are you sitting so quiet, so scared looking? Afraid to crack under pain?"

"What the bloody hell?" Andrew gasped. "Isn't that illegal?"

Diana ignored him for good reason. There were too many things happening at once, Diana's heart hammered in her chest, as she stood there helpless for there was nothing else she could do. She hated being weak, so Diana immediately took the first initiative. She knocked on the glass that separated them, positively getting the men's attention.

"Restrain him." She mouthed carefully.

"Officers help! He's gone mad!" Andrew followed Diana's initiative and went to look for the Constables from across the hall.

"What are you doing?" the Professor yelled as she pushed the Sergeant away from the girl.

Diana took note of the strength the French Professor had on her. She might not look like it, but the fact that she was able to do that meant that underneath all those clothing was a musclewoman—or a lucky rush of adrenaline.

Everyone was afraid for a second that Sergeant Kinsley had lost his mind. He scared them; their haunted faces eventually wore off. The detective and the lawyer who froze at the sight finally got Diana's message and tackled him. Just in time for Andrew and some guards to arrive and quickly opened the door to help deal with the damage.

"Akko, are you okay?" The professor caressed the girl's face. "You're bleeding!"

The girl whimpered. She had a blackened eye from that one vicious attack. Blood spilled from her nose, but still, she had a huge smile on. She gave one thumbs-up, unable to speak.

Diana winced when she saw a dent in the table.

This was not normal—at all.

Andrew heroically arrived with two Constables and Miss Manbavaran. The imminent threat of a lunatic Sergeant deemed more important than controlling a stray student out of the vicinity or perhaps the girl used the confusion to get in.

Miss Manbavaran gasped at the sight of her friend. "Akko!"

The Police Constables unlocked the door for him and his companion to help. The girl was also ready to sprint inside when Diana grabbed her hand. She turned around to look at Diana ferociously, giving Diana sudden chills.

"You could get hurt too," Diana stated.

The grayish pale girl gritted her teeth but stayed still. Diana found herself intrigued by the girl's oddity before shifting her attention back inside. It took four capable men inside to contain the sudden berserker who was frothing at the mouth.

Everyone in the vicinity stared at the Sergeant. He was straight-backed, glancing around every now and then in panic. His arms were handcuffed behind him, ensuring that he wouldn't attack anyone.

In a loud, firm voice that punctuated through, he stated. "I told you she did it!"

"You don't have enough evidence to support that!" Yeti yelled. The poor and tensed lawyer for Miss Kagari unexpectedly gained the bravery to stand up and defend his client. "You didn't have the right to detain her, and I'd appreciate it if you stop harassing my client! You are abusing your authority. I can help her sue you for kidnapping!"

"No!" his voice broke. "It was clearly her. She is lying to you! If you don't serve justice for my son! Then I will!" That inhuman quality, plus the cold force of this appalling threat, convinced the rest of the people, as it did with Diana, that he meant exactly what he said.

Sergeant Kinsley doesn't really need any other weapon to show that he was fierce and fearsome, but he was able to break through the handcuffs by sheer force, his veins popping and his muscles strained.

"You really should have confiscated my weapons." He reached for his auto knife and with quick reflexes, threw it at Yeti who stood protectively in front of the Asian girl right between the eyes, similar to a young David who slingshot a rock to a Giant's forehead.

It was a quick death. Yeti hadn't had the chance to scream for help.

"OH CRAP!" The Detective yelled as they watched his body fall to the cold ground.

"SHIT!" One of the Constables pointed his gun at him and nearly pressed down on the trigger. Too late to recognize that it was a bad idea to open fire in an enclosed space. He, however, tried to intimidate and review their options, but it made things even worse.

It was a bad move; even Diana can possibly tell that.

"Point that at him." The other Constable quickly reached for another melee weapon. They were clearly underprepared for an attack without the use of guns. He fumbled on his combat blade before pointing the pointy edge at him. "SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT!"

He saw the Sergeant grabbed a chair, waving it around to strike the Constables in his close proximity. Pain surged through the Constables' body as their bloody screams filled the room. They both crashed right for the ground.

Andrew yelped at the impact as if it was him who got hit.

The ground lightly trembled beneath the sounds of giant footsteps the Sergeant made when he walked his way towards where the accused and her guardian were. It was somehow impossible for a huge-bellied Constable to do those feats but the fact that he's on an anger strike, it was close to possible.

"KINSLEY!" The sole detective in the room decided to play hero and injected himself between the Sergeant the teenage girl and proceeded to talk to him. "WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED TO YOU? Let's talk about this, mate. This won't do justice to your son at all."

It was futile for he was greeted with a chair to his face.

This wasn't good. This wasn't good at all. When the men in the room were nothing but rag dolls, Sergeant Kinsley glared hard at his target, clutching hard on the chair's legs.

With one final heave he aimed the hunk of metal towards the teenager he was raging after. Professor Ursula fashioned a dart from her pockets—a questionable piece that Diana would ask some time later—and shot it at the madman.

The effect was instantaneous. Sergeant Kinsley blinked a few times before staring at the dark that prickled his skin before collapsing to the ground. Diana presumed that the dart was laced with a tranquilizer.

Professor Ursula hurriedly grabbed the Asian girl and dashed through the opened door, pleading at Diana and the rest. "Quick, bring her somewhere safe with you and call in for reinforcements!"

Diana caught the Asian girl who held her face in pain.

"Aw..." she mumbled, the whole body in pain from the beaten and Diana had by now able to tell she had broken skin on her lips. She stared up at Diana, her vision was losing focus. "Wow, you're so pretty."

The shorter girl leaned against Diana for support, leaving Diana unknowing how to reply.

"And what are you doing here, Sucy?" Professor Ursula barked at the third girl.

"I... I was worried."

"What about you?" Andrew asked. Diana's focus shifted to the task at hand.

"As you can see, I am perfectly capable of handling him." Professor Ursula said, completely dismissing them. "And besides, I have to see if everyone else is okay."

The duo nodded and started a head start to safety.

Diana took one last look back at the scene and wasn't sure if her mind was playing tricks on her. For she was certain that the supposed knocked out man stood up with a snarl, his eyes rolling upwards. He was already holding out a gun, and noticeably without a silencer.

Professor Ursula managed to save her eardrums by heading out of the room and locking the door before the Sergeant pointed the gun at his forehead and shot himself.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heads up! Like the Yeti (who I made a human in his AU), minor characters from the show and the game will appear... at least some of them. Among all chapters so far, Lotte, Sola and the twins have appeared as background characters, if you have found them. Lotte will appear much sooner.


	6. Chapter 6

"Strange how circumstances could change so quickly," Diana murmured to herself. "The sergeant killed himself even if he was supposed to asleep after being injected with a tranquilizer."

She wondered why Sergeant Kinsley destroyed security camera. It made no sense. If a rational man was already committing a crime with police officers as witnesses, why on earth did he find the need to remove the footage then kill himself after?

The second mystery was the seemingly harmless Professor. It might be a personal choice for her to work out, but the fact that she had a tranquilizer needle in her arsenal was to be solved. She searched through the school's database on the Academy's website with the password given to her by the Headmistress herself to look upon records and files inaccessible to students. She came to the information that the French woman who first seemed to be an ordinary teacher had no input about her background and past prior to her years.

She joined the academy 10 years ago and that was the only early years she found. Professor Ursula Callistis became the Miss Kagari's entrusted guardian through legal dealings with her parents in Tokyo, Japan.

"They have tea," Andrew said, making her lose her train of thought. He just came back from being questioned by an Inspector for he was among one of the witnesses on the Sergeant's road to lunacy. "The Inspector's already asking questions from Miss Kagari's friend. I told you that they were stuck. Statements from different people won't change the perspective of everyone here. Sergeant Kinsley went mad, attacked a poor girl and killed himself."

"We have been both reminded of our fleeting mortality, so I wonder if you were approaching a point with that tea offering," Diana said, displeased about his interruption and his obvious reasons.

"You know," he started, sitting next to her while balancing both cups on his hands. "You could be nice to me. I'm here in distress and I thought so were you. What got you so irked?"

"I thought I should review what happened by looking through the footages within the sanctum sanctorum of the cops. But they refuse to let me look. My thoughts wandered off to another piece of a puzzle that might not help in the long run so all things aside, I might have wasted my time. The police want all of the evidence in their possession whether they admit it or not and they are being ungrateful."

"Do we even have a suspect pool?"

"I'm making one up as we go."

The mild flavor of bergamot hung in the air and wafted to Diana's nose. A sudden thought crossed her mind. She grabbed the tea she was offered and stood up, heading towards the paramedic's area.

"Wait! Diana, where are you going?"

"I need to have a word with Miss Kagari," Diana said, declining to look back. "Don't come, your criticism on my personal choices makes me want to gouge my eardrums out. There are some theories I'd like to approve with her, alone."

"You were able to make some?"

"Of course," Diana smiled. "The only clue I can concur without case files."

* * *

 

" ** _You will_**  stay here while I get to the bottom of this."

"B-but Professor!"

"I'm serious Akko, you nearly died today. Heaven forbid something happens to you! Sucy is being questioned right now and I will be next. But before all that, Sucy will get an earful out of me too. I told her to stay back at the academy." The French Professor said evenly but with a hint of sisterly anger when the oldest caught the youngest doing something they shouldn't be.

"She's just worried about me, you saw how the Sergeant took me here!"

"He's really demented. I'll file a suit against the police department. I don't know why they put madmen like him in ranks!"

Akko's face was conflicted. "I'm okay really; I understand why he went all crazy."

"One of the things you should know, Akko. Do not let people take advantage of you. You have rights, and you should not let anyone tell you otherwise." Professor Ursula said with a stroke of final in her voice before storming out. "You stay here. And I expect for you to follow my instructions better than your friend over there."

Diana went aghast when it chanced upon her that she had arrived at an awkward time. She prided herself on choosing to meddle in best times. This wasn't one of them.

Professor Ursula noticed her in the corridor hiding and quickly, her facial expressions changed. "Miss Cavendish! I'm sorry you had to hear that."

"Not at all, you are merely worried about her."

The tall woman nodded and dismissed herself. "Thank you for sticking around, Miss Cavendish."

"Staying here is my priority," Diana said. "Not because the Headmistress asked me."

"You're incredibly affectionate." She said in a soft tone. "I'm sure Akko will appreciate your accompany."

Diana hoped so.

As soon as the Professor's footfalls faded away, Diana revealed herself to the girl. "Hello," she tentatively greeted, offering her the cup. "Would you care for some tea?"

The girl merely looked up at the hot beverage and received it gratefully. Diana took the silent gesture as an invitation to sit next to her on the bench.

It was only after the girl took the lid off her hot tea and drank about half that Diana spoke conversantly. "Are you okay, Miss Kagari? How's your eye?"

She grinned, her tongue feeling a little numb from the tea. "Just call me Akko, Miss President. And my eye is fine. No vision problems, it just stings when I open it." She further applied cold pressure to the said injury.

A cursory inspection confirmed that her eye was healing well; the same held true for the cut lip.

Calmly, Diana sat back. "Looks good," she remarked.

Akko stared at her, but said nothing, tucking the warm blanket around her small body.

"So you know who I am."

Akko gulped. "No, not really, Professor Ursula reminded me who you were when I asked her. She pinched me at the back for being apathetic to current events and people surrounding me. But I did notice you guys, I was surprised when I saw you and that handsome guy watching me."

Diana's jaw stiffened. Her compliment to Andrew made her just like the other girls—all shallow, unable to cope with her strenuous activities and clever beliefs. She gave her a look. "Akko, all things aside, I believe we're overdue for a chat."

"Aren't we already chatting? I don't mind." She said, completely undeterred with eloquent English.

"May I ask you a question? I do not mean to come off as insensitive but the question I will ask is about the case."

Akko stared at her with an eyebrow raised. It was as if she was contemplating why a teenager was being intrusive to a case, but instead, her thoughts were completely different. "Is it a fragile question?"

Diana frowned. Akko still has long ways to go to understand her second language. "Do you mean delicate?"

Akko's mouth opened and shut a few times, struggling, prompting Diana to consider she wasn't good at making a good impression on her. Diana does have a superiority complex has the ability to shun people away if she let her mouth run wild. The first initial thought was disproven by Andrew who learned to adapt and adjust to get along with her. A lifetime supply of witty retort is all needed to remain her closest friend.

However, Diana doesn't want to shun Akko away. She needed information.

With a long inhale, Diana said a bit quickly. "Trauma expresses itself in different forms in different victims. I know how hard it is for you, I just witnessed it myself. But to witness it occurring and to experience it firsthand causes completely dissimilar effects."

"How come you and the vice president are here?" Akko interjected.

Diana raised an eyebrow; she was beginning to think that the girl has an attention deficit disorder, but she decided to indulge and trek carefully. "We are here on behalf of you. I do believe that you are innocent, although you are beginning to get on my nerves. Nevertheless, I don't see how a mature man would lose it. Maybe since he hadn't slept for months and is filled with ungodly rage."

Akko snickered. "I've been told that I annoy people a lot."

"So..." Diana said, waiting to see if Akko's focus will shift somewhere else. But when she was certain there was none, she asked. "Do you have any ideas what caused the victims to kill themselves?"

"Why are you asking me that? I have no idea."

"My apologies," Diana said, putting a hand on her chest. "Let me rephrase that. You see, I have a reason to believe that there is a cause why the crime involves around you, specifically."

Akko's face scrunched up. Her nose creasing in deep thought. "Are you saying I'm cursed?"

"I don't believe in curses; however, effect and causation, I do believe."

"What does that even mean?" Akko placed a finger to the side of her forehead.

Diana smiled. "I happen to share the same belief with the Sergeant that the boys didn't kill themselves, but was murdered."

"Why?"

"Their deaths were calculated. Friends, even haunted by guilt would never agree to commit mass suicide. If they do, never commit it places far away from each other and never kill themselves in separate times."

"Oh?" Akko mumbled. She began to think about it hard. "What if they didn't agree to kill themselves on the same day so it was just a pure coincidence that they wanted to do it?

"There is no such thing as pure coincidence," Diana stated.

"So what does that mean, somebody, coerced them into taking their own lives? Like at a gunpoint?"

Diana blinked. Akko was not aware of the difference between 'fragile' and 'delicate' but she knew the word 'coerced'. Perhaps, having a conversation with her has either rubbed off a little bit of habit to the Japanese girl or beckoned her to practice her English for better articulation.

"It's plausible, Akko," Diana said, too late in recognizing that she was telling everything she knew to her, so she might as well continue. "Any viable person can do it. Threaten them to do it at a gunpoint to make it look like a suicide. Although, Psychopaths and Sociopaths can do it without any difficulty and most importantly even without a gun. Anyone could have talked to them, manipulated them, they could be their psychiatrist, their consultant, their friend or someone else—and I'm positively sure it's not you."

"How are you sure I'm not manipulating you?"

_You have no makings of a serial killer._

Diana wanted to say but carefully thought out her words. "I have a good feeling about you, that's all." She smirked before a subject change. "Earlier, when the Sergeant's mood changed... did you see anything weird?"

"Weird how?"

"Like, did he feel off?" Diana shrugged. "Did you suddenly begin to think the man's morals will disappear?"

"You mean if I can see it in his eyes?"

She nodded. "You might call it intuition."

"I actually didn't." Akko laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of her head. "I felt like I hadn't been much of a help to you, but maybe because it's me and I don't listen to class at all."

"Yes, you seem to not care for those around you unless it's about you and topics you are most concerned."

"I do have an attention span of a goldfish, so its a surprise that I'm actually keeping up a conversation with you." she laughed while rubbing her nape.

"It's not a bad thing at all you know." Diana pointed to her noggin. "Your brain has a limited capacity to store memories and information and the fact that you are able to dissect what you believe is important and what is not is a sign of a perfect and normal functioning brain power. I don't blame you at all if you believe that boring topics are rubbish. Most of it is. The cluttering in my head makes me consume more antioxidants for brain power."

Akko stifled a giggle. "S-sorry, but you are just funny, Diana."

Diana pursed her lips. "The fact that you actually found amusement in our sarcastic remarks explains a lot why the Sergeant thinks you are guilty."

"Why does he think I'm guilty anyway?"

"Simply put and no offense to you, he might have thought you were acting dumb and I'm this close to believing it myself." she showed her thumb and forefinger nearly touching.

Akko puffed her cheeks; her eyes slanted more when she squinted. "Oh my, is that so?"

Diana smirked to find that Akko was capable of sensing and making sarcasm—a sign of intelligence. "Oh, I'm dreadfully sorry, we've strayed off topic." She apologized for doing what she disliked the most but there was something about Akko that she found naturally intriguing.

"No, it's fine. You talk very differently from a certain magician I know but the lessons she teaches are quite the same."

"Magician?"

"You must have heard of her!" Akko's eyes shone like gold in streaming water. "Shiny Chariot... the most famous magician in the world! She's the one who inspired me to learn how to do magic tricks herself!"

Diana unwillingly traveled down the memory lane again. She was once a fan of Shiny Chariot too. It was a hobby of her for quite some time until believing in such trickery was deemed distasteful to indulge in by the members of the House of Cavendish.

The House of Cavendish hated to be deceived and Chariot DuNord was a Deception Specialist. She was a master at misdirecting people's attention. No matter how closely you watch her, she still can fool her victim. She was aware that the human brain has weaknesses and she's using that weakness to her advantage.

Diana was unable to stop herself from comparing Shiny Chariot to Arsène Lupin, a fictional character by French author Maurice Leblanc who was a gentleman thief and a master of disguise. Except when Diana delved further into her theory, there is no way a former idol of hers would turn to murder unless there was a psychological turn of events.

Pensively, Diana immediately connected all the dots. "Akko, I don't mean to intrude but... I know Professor Ursula Callistis is Shiny Chariot herself."

"EHHHH?" Akko gasped. "H-how did you know that? I swore I didn't tell you anything."

"You didn't." Diana smirked, "Explicitly."

"How did you come up with that conclusion?"

"Easy. First of all—Professor Ursula dyed her red hair blue, let it grow long and wore glasses. A classic but powerful disguise most people who can act managed to pull off. Next—Shiny Chariot disappeared from the spotlight 10 years ago and Professor Ursula came to the academy in exactly a month apart with Ursula Callistis' information all incognito before the said date. Third—while she was protecting you from Thomas' father, she fashioned a tranquilizer dart from her uniform like a readily secret agent. Lastly—how come you managed to be under the Professor's wing when nothing ties you two? Neither familial or friendship from your relatives. There was also no money or bribery involved. So there you go."

"Wow, you are amazing. How did you know that I'm not related to her at all?"

"Computer data from the academy's records, if they held the truth that is," Diana said. "And besides, my deductions are still naturally flawed. It was all wild surmise that was proven right by your reaction."

"WHAT?" Akko yelled. "So you weren't sure if you were right?"

"I take wages sometimes," Diana said. "Of course I don't go all in when I'm not confident enough or I don't have solid proof in a real case. You should definitely get the credit of finding her, Akko. It wasn't me who first found the whereabouts of Chariot DuNord or more famously known as Shiny Chariot."

"It took me a while yes." Akko smiled. "And I'm not telling you how."

Diana rolled her eyes. "Not all vital information can be found on the internet, I can detect, observe and deduce. I've met you and Professor Ursula today and I can glean most of your personalities in a heartbeat. The fact that you and Professor Ursula are so close is the result of exchanging letters. You certainly are the kind of person who writes to her idol. And Chariot, as someone who is slowly adjusting to the new life one isn't accustomed to, they will always revert back to find a glimmer of hope that could give remind them and reminisce about their past. Even if she wasn't Shiny Chariot anymore, she still can find a way to find those letters herself and if the contents of the letter are tearful and inspiring, surely she will contact you back. For which individual who starves from social interaction can deny a tempting piece?"

Akko puffed her cheeks, crossing her arms. "Okay, not fair. You totally figured us out."

"There are some things I can't be sure of, of course."

"There's something you couldn't deduce or guess? Now that's a relief. What is it?"

"Why did she change her identity? There wasn't any news about her gaining enemies or getting sued."

"I don't know, she won't even tell me."

"Looks like it's not my job to find out," she winked at her. "Fret not, Akko. I will keep my mouth shut. Her hiding in the shadows does not involve me at all."

"Really? You would?"

There was a puzzling pounding in her chest that Diana couldn't quite discern. It had gotten her back into wondering why she was thinking so hard about Shiny Chariot and Akko when she should get back to the original mystery.

_Who is Thomas Kinsley's murder?_

Akko is an astounding girl; Diana was taken aback by her first general impression of her wasn't that great. Conversing with Akko proved a theory of hers in its speculative stages. Despite all that, an unfathomable question haunted her.

_Who loved Akko so much that the murder would happen?_

Professor Ursula is definitely hiding something... something that forced her to hide her identity. It was possible with murder as it was possible with a silent felony. Diana reminded herself mentally to search if there was a huge unsolved case 10 years ago.

Until then, Chariot DuNord doesn't seem to be suspect; suspicious yes—but not the potential suspect.

There was a silent movement to the entrance of the medic area and her eyes caught the figure. Miss Manbavaran had just arrived after being questioned for statements and maybe, after getting an earful from Professor Ursula.

Diana's eyes settled on her for a second before blinking back to look at Akko.

Sucy Manbavaran was a girl that you can hardly miss from a crowd. That was all Diana knew about her, making her realize that needed more information.

Finally, there was a lead.

Diana cleared her throat, making it strictly professional. "Professor Ursula doesn't frail in her guardianship over you, you know. Hence, it's in your best interest to heed your guardian's warning. I'll see you tomorrow at school if we find each other free."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do you all think of Diana's wits?


	7. Chapter 7

Sucy arrived at the Blytonbury Police Service to visit her best friend while Loa was left in her room at the flat. The plan was for Loa to continue controlling the Sergeant while she showed up at a place where people can vouch for her alibi.

Without further ado, she halted by the Constable right outside the door, yet noticed that the Student Council President and the Vice President were inside.

Sucy knew manipulating people is her advantage. It was proven when she was able to deceive the Inspector who asked her questions about the incident earlier. All she had to do was an act. Not too much though, because she still needed to act on a character.

She was about to head back towards to Akko when Professor Ursula decided to scold her right after she exited the office.

"Please don't do it again." Professor Ursula's features softened. She was so different than her guardian.

This is why a faint smile appeared on her lips that Akko was fortunate to have her.

"I'm sorry, Professor," Sucy said. "But I would do it over and over again for Akko."

The French woman sighed. "I know you would." She patted her on the shoulder before heading into the office.

Sucy glided back towards the medic area, surprised to see that Academy's popular know-it-all blonde was there comforting Akko. It was a weird sight.

Diana Cavendish gazed up she noticed Sucy. Even up close, Sucy's mental picturing of her was still of an arrogant, high and mighty girl with a pointy nose. Sucy walked towards them without even making the smallest of gestures towards each other. Akko was oblivious to the conspicuous discrepancy between the two young girls, as she seldom bothered to compare them in any way.

Truthfully, Sucy doesn't really hate her, but there is nothing more annoying than an entitled blonde girl who likes horses and teas. She just doesn't ride the bandwagon that most of the students in Luna Nova treat the Student Council President. Sucy doesn't mind the indifference from the Cavendish girl as well.

Although she hated it when the Brit touched her, she hated being touched by people she didn't give consent to.

But then, Sucy saw a distinct look that Cavendish's was giving her. It was to some extent perceptive and taunting—as if she was a piece of a puzzle that completed the whole mystery that plagued the blonde girl's mind.

The Brit finished up her conversation with Akko. "Professor Ursula doesn't frail in her guardianship over you, you know. Hence, it's in your best interest to heed your guardian's warning. I'll see you tomorrow at school if you find yourself free." She excused herself and flipped her hair in a dramatic exit.

Akko and Sucy watched her retreat towards the door Sucy just came in before looking at each other. "Why are you guys getting chummy?"

"She's with me on an official business."

Sucy's eyebrow furrowed. "Her words are harsh, but I do get the feeling that she was sincerely concerned about you."

"Well yeah, she saw me knocked over by a police. Not just you." She grinned, proceeding to apply cold compress on her blackened eye.

Sucy got a full view of Akko and gasped. A sharp pang shot through her heart. She did that to Akko.

The bridge of Akko's nose was swollen and bruised; the discoloration continued across her left cheekbone, in what would probably soon become an ugly black eye. Her lips were puffy. They had bled, too, but the only cut there was on the inside of her bottom lip.

Sucy hadn't seen it coming. Though surely next time, she had to specifically emphasize to Loa the force of inflicting harm should be minimal when it comes to Akko.

With shaking hands, Sucy held Akko's cheek with care. "Akko," her lips trembled. "You nearly died, and getting your head smashed onto a desk was more exciting?"

Akko laughed guiltily. "I guess I have more scars to tell."

Sucy quickly wrapped her hands around Akko's neck to a close hug, saddened that she was responsible for what happened to her. Akko was taken aback by the sudden gesture but she welcomed the hug with the same passion.

When the physical contact ended, Sucy's face was still flustered. "Akko, you keep blowing people away with surprise."

"I know right?" Akko shrugged. "I bet you didn't even see it coming, because I didn't! It's like how Chariot builds up the crowd's excitement when she's up for her next trick."

With a small grin of Akko raving about her idol, Sucy watched her silently for a couple of minutes before asking. "Hey, Akko, why were the Student Council here?"

"Oh! She said that she was told to oversee the interrogation by the school."

Sucy's eyebrows connected. If the Student Council President supervised the interrogation meant that the Headmistress or Deputy Headmistress themselves are busy or couldn't be bothered with it at all.

"So you mean to say she's allowed to be here?"

"Yeah, she was being very kind to me and asked me a couple of questions about the murders and suicides."

_Shit._

Sucy was well informed that the Cavendish girl is a genius. She could imagine Loa asking her how could a girl like Diana Cavendish possibly scare a powerful practitioner of the dark arts in a voice so faint.

She scowled and pursed her lips. The Student Council President was onto her. If the Brit continued to trek in Sucy's path then in about time she will figure out that it was her all along. Sucy needed to find a way to eradicate her out of the picture fast.

"Uhh... Sucy?" Akko waved a hand near her face.

"Akko, could you do me a favor?"

"What?" Akko scooted away from her. "Become your guinea pig again? We've been through this, Sucy, I don't want that anymore and Professor Ursula says it's hazardous to my health!"

"Not that one, you idiot!" Sucy barked, her razor-sharp teeth becoming prominent. "I meant to do me a favor for something else!"

"Oh, what is it?"

Sucy was so close to foam in her mouth, the anger was palpable. Through gritted teeth, she mustered. "Get me a strand of Cavendish's hair."

"Eh?" Akko frowned. "What for?"

Sucy took two deep breaths. "Don't ask questions."

"Fine!" Akko stood up, heading towards the comfort room. "Don't tell me! But if you're going cast a spell on her, I'll know it's you."

A cold shiver ran down Sucy's spine, to think that Akko basically got her plan. Sucy wasn't sure if it was Cavendish's influence on her or maybe Akko's imagination went wild again.

She merely glared at the empty space grimly for a few long moments, a despicable scheme formulating in her head.

"Diana Cavendish... she needs to die." The words she sputtered were low and menacing.

* * *

 ** _Andrew waited_**  for her at the room where she left him. The moment their eyes met, his mouth quivered to speak, but Diana beat her to it.

"If you're wondering if we talked, then the answer is yes, obviously."

He seemed unperturbed by her snarky remark. "You're playing good cop, bad cop on her."

"I'm not playing at all. I'm genuinely intrigued by this puzzle."

"Did the visit validate the theory or was it a complete waste of time?"

"It wasn't," Diana said. "Atsuko Kagari is innocent, and not only did my theory deemed valid but it also expanded and explained the flaws."

"Congrats," Andrew shrugged. "Care to share what might that be?"

"The murders are committed because of her," Diana said. "Thomas died because he was bullying her; his friends were murdered because they were in cahoots. Sergeant Kinsley could be ruled out. We saw him take his own life."

"Are you insinuating that you found a connection because it revolved around Miss Kagari?"

Diana inhaled deeply, figuring she needed to tell him and they were a bit far away from any possible listeners. "If Thomas Kinsley wasn't the victim, he would have been the murderer. He was a misguided, antisocial, rebellious 16-year-old. And in fact, he was such a delinquent, that when he was murdered, his classmates and everyone else in the school and those who knew him on the streets never batted their eyelashes. A lot of people harbored animosity towards him, so I'm deadbeat sure his killer is within the school's walls."

"And who do you think would be the unfortunate victim if he ever was the murderer?"

"I think you already know, Andrew. I went off on my own to befriend her."

Andrew's eyebrows shot to his hairline. "What had you gotten so far out of her?"

Diana observed the walls and the security of the place, finding herself distrusting the place. She will tell him as soon as they leave.

"Don't leave me hanging, come on." He said. "Not after minutes ago you were spitting it all out."

"Andrew, you said so yourself. Prideful murderers return to the scene of a crime. Thanks to that reminder, I've got my eye on the possible serial killer." Diana retorted. She knew she had hit a nerve as soon as the words were out,

"Oh God, Diana, please listen to me this time. Please disengage right now." Andrew pleaded. "They know you are looking for her; you interviewed Miss Kagari for God's sake. They know what you look like, your name, where you live and you're younger and smaller than me."

Diana gave him a look, annoyed as a little sister to her overprotective older brother. "My life is not in danger as of now, Andrew."

"Do you have to wait until it does?"

"You know, Andrew. I take it all back—about what I said in your criticisms. I'm beginning to find the chat that accompanying your companionship extremely useful. It's like white noise. It puts me in a state where I think and observe better."

Andrew smiled roguishly. "Oh, I know why you keep me around Diana. You were lying to me when you said I make you want to gouge your eardrums out. You simply didn't want me to come with you because you thought Miss Kagari won't cooperate with you and fall for my charms instead."

"I will have you seduce her when it's necessary, Andrew. You are my last resort. I have to see for myself if I can be able to manage a feat on my own kind, thank you. And before I send you away to her, you need to be debriefed."

Andrew let out a hearty laugh. "If you say so, Diana, may the best seducer of information win."

"I have no need to indulge on that," Diana said. "Idiots rely on luck."

Andrew ticked his tongue.

"And besides, I'm pretty sure I can handle Sucy Manbavaran to a battle of wits."

"WHAT?"

"Voice down, Andrew," Diana scoffed.

Andrew stared at her ludicrously, while pointing a thumb behind him, gesturing at Akko's friend.

"Yes, she has the motive to protect her. I'll tell you the rest of the details soon."


	8. Chapter 8

A knock on the wooden door brought a sound that reverberated through the Student Council room the next day. Bracing her hand on the couch's arm, Diana hoisted herself up but was pushed back down to her seat.

"We'll get it, Diana!" Hannah and Barbara rushed past her.

Diana chuckled at her friends' ton of excess energy.

"It's Frank!" They chattered even as they proceeded to drag Frank into the house. He was holding a bouquet of flowers in one hand, and a cardboard box of chocolate under his opposite arm.

Frank flashed Diana a smile that somehow was both goofy and encouraging at the same time. Hannah and Barbara couldn't handle their gushing and giggling to themselves.

Diana stifled a groan from escaping her lips. She didn't have the heart to refuse a man who was obviously doing his best to woo his lady love.

"Hi Frank," Andrew greeted as Frank walked into the meeting room; he was sitting opposite Diana and munched on a biscuit. Although he seemed casual, Diana knew the nonchalant and silent disposition of his was an indicator that he knew something was about to go out of hand here.

Frank made his way across the living room to have a seat next to Diana. "Everyone takes their jobs seriously here, I wonder if all of you spend your free time actually resting."

"We do it at lunchtime," Diana said, getting the pot to refill her teacup. "So, Frank what brings you here, do you want to become a volunteer like Hannah and Barbara?"

"These are for you." He smiled, extending the bouquet.

"Oh, Frank, they're beautiful!"Diana tried her best to exclaim in joy as she brought her nose to the pink roses, so delicately arranged with ferns and baby's breath, pausing to inhale their fragrance. "And they smell so nice! Thank you!"

Frank leaned closer to envelop her in a hug, Diana seized the moment to move a few inches away from Frank, to prevent him from actually hugging her but they already touched. Frank easily noticed that she made her uncomfortable with her advances.

"Actually, Diana, these aren't from me." He began, rubbing the back of his neck with a free hand.

"What do you mean?" Diana inquired, confusion lacing her eyes.

"They're from a friend who wanted to remain anonymous." He explained, hoping the nervousness in his eyes wasn't giving too much away.

But Diana; however, was keener than that.

"An anonymous friend?" she pressed. "Would that anonymous friend happen to know I do not have time to indulge myself with the matters of the heart?"

"Uhh, maybe she I mean—he didn't." Frank gulped; he was nervously playing with his hair. Diana noticed that his hair was becoming undone by the spray that held his hairstyle together.

Andrew wanted to slap his forehead at the pitiful attempt of flirting. Though, he did, try to salvage his friend's dignity. "Mate, I have reports to hand to the Deputy Headmistress, would you mind going with me?"

"Yes!" Frank replied almost too enthusiastically.

As Frank and Andrew turned around to leave, Diana glared at the bouquet and the box of chocolate. "Bloody hell, these are Aunt Daryl's idea," she muttered in disgust. "She just doesn't know when to quit, huh? She even used Frank to have him try to make me fall for him."

Before Hannah or Barbara managed to stop her, Diana had grabbed the flowers and walked into the kitchen area of the Student Council room to find the nearest trash bin to violently throw them in, tears welling up in her eyes. She blinked them away. She was stronger than that.

The duo's surprised protest sounded from the living room, but Diana ignored it.

"Diana!" Hannah and Barbara exclaimed, obviously stunned by her reaction.

"No girls!" She protested. "You know how I feel about early marriage and marriage proposals. You know how I feel about my Aunt. I don't want to accept anything from potential suitors. It's a trap."

The girls nodded, able to understand her train of thought. It was sound logic, but Diana still wasn't drawing the correct conclusion. Or, she didn't want them to know.

Diana's thoughts wandered to what occurred after the incident in the police station. The moment Diana and Andrew were in a safe and secure place, she relayed her observations so far to him.

Of course, Andrew was encouraging and at the same time hesitant.

" _Her best friend certainly is the killer."_

" _What proof do you have of that?" Andrew asked. "Just because Miss Manbavaran loved her dearly doesn't mean she is the killer we're looking for. If ever, we're looking at her adoptive guardian. Chariot is very much suspicious."_

" _I've told you repeatedly that she's another mystery and not a piece to this puzzle—I've given you countless of evidence to contradict your judgment."_

" _Don't you think you're being biased?" Andrew hissed. "Just because you think Chariot couldn't become evil doesn't mean she's not a suspect. I'm more inclined to believe that it's her rather than Miss Manbavaran. This isn't some crime fiction where the murderer is the seemingly harmless young girl."_

" _Then I shall get myself some proof that it's her._ _All I need is a murder weapon and everything else will be revealed._ _"_

" _Diana, you know I care about you but I think this delusion of yours needs to stop. There's a difference with wanting the killer to be Miss Manbavaran and knowing the killer is Miss Manbavaran."_

_She chuckled, yet her sensitive heart was breaking, "So you show your true colors... since from the beginning you never believed in me."_

Diana's thought process was interrupted. Her stomach rumbled, telling her that all this intellectual thinking was burning more energy than she could replenish. Asides from that, she had been making a habit of skipping meals, reluctant to spend any more time in the dining room at the Cavendish Manor.

She stared behind her, making sure that no dark shadowy figure would attack her unguarded.

"I have a killer to catch before I face my demons," Diana whispered.

Here at school, her demons could not reach her.

* * *

" _ **Can I sit**_  with you?" Cavendish asked a crowd different from her usual ones.

Sucy and Akko stared at her blankly.

Everyone who's present in the cafeteria had their bulging eyes at them. Complete with jaws dropped to the floor at the sight of the Student Council President wanting to sit next to Akko and Sucy.

After the incident the Sergeant caused yesterday, Akko became the favorite topic of gossip ever since. Wangari had already written three incriminating articles about the cafeteria, the interrogation, and the Sergeant's suicide—all were about Akko being at fault for everything.

But it was deemed by the authorities that Akko was innocent so all of Wangari's accusations were false, yet it fed the imaginations of the student body. Sucy wouldn't be surprised later on if everyone brings pitchforks and fire to get rid of Akko.

"Really?" Sucy quipped. "Do you want to sit by the social pariah table?"

"Your so-called pariah-ship will soon be over once everything else returns to proper order." Cavendish looked as if she didn't like self-deprecating term Sucy used for themselves, but what Sucy was concerned about was that why is Diana saint Cavendish being sociable to them.

" _She does know the killer is you,"_ Loa whispered to her, who was still carefully hidden inside Sucy's belongings.  _"What is your next move now?"_

"Don't mind her, Diana!" Akko smiled, her eye was better than it was yesterday. She also wore a concealer to hide the dark color better. "Please take a sit!"

Between the storm and the fire, Akko was the only one who managed to smile at the upcoming clash of doomsday. Cavendish helped herself as she placed her tray of food on the table.

Sucy crossed her arms, still displeased that the Brit was sitting in front of her. "Where's your better half?"

"He is not my better half in a romantic sense," Cavendish said. "But if you meant partner in crime then he unfortunately is."

"He seems like a puppy you can toss around and keep with a leash."

Cavendish overlooked her as she continued to spread butter on her bread, taking her sweet time before answering. "Worry not about him. If you think he and I are glued like twins, you are mistaken. He's got his own business to attend to."

"So your business is here?" Sucy asked.

It was an ongoing battle. Where both of them ask incriminating questions and first to give is the loser, like whether storm or fire will come first to terrorize the city of its dangers.

Cavendish munched on her bread, giving herself the excuse not to answer the query. Nibbling her meal, she glanced around. "So," she said with a nod, looking at Akko expectantly, "Professor Ursula."

"What about her?" blurted Akko, baffled.

"I wonder why she's not around. I have morning class with her but she has a substitute."

Sucy gave up; falling back into her seat with a huff and clenching both her fists under the table for Diana Cavendish disregarded her question. She decided to zip her lips tight, fantasizing on how she would kill the Student Council President.

"Yeah, she told me she had errands to do," Akko said a little agitated as she went on. "She just left early this morning."

"Where did she say she would go?" Sucy asked, biting in the situation.

"She was in a hurry actually..." Akko said, biting her fingernail. "But I did see that her plane ticket was towards... I'm sure it was Asia. I should really focus on geography lessons."

"Is she going to Japan?"

"No," she said.

"If Akko knew which country it is, she might have mentioned it previously." Cavendish mused. "If she's stalling it means she knows and agreed to keep it a secret."

Akko turned and gave Cavendish her best-heated glare, but the Brit didn't even flinch "I didn't read the ticket longer to have memorized it. But it started with a 'P'. Phi..."

"Philippines?" Sucy gasped.

Cavendish's eyes widened, intrigued. "Isn't that where you came from, Sucy?"

"Oh yes!" Akko giggled.

Sucy gulped her minced mushroom hard. Loa wasn't making it easier for her to think. By the time Loa shut up in her thoughts, she was contemplating the floor, clearly deep in thought. "What business does Professor Ursula have there?" she asked.

Akko gulped hard this time. Her eyes darted sideward, laughing nervously. "Oh, how do I know?"

Cavendish bit on her bread with butter. "I have a rough idea."

"Oh no!" Akko grumbled. "Are you going to take a guess again?"

The question struck Sucy as odd.

Cavendish's focus shifted from her to Sucy. "Is there perchance a reason why she needed to buy something from Miss Manbavaran's home country? If so, is your birthday about to come up?"

Sucy narrowed her eyes at the two girls sharing her table. Then it came to her. With just a few social cues, Diana Cavendish was able to deduce what was happening. If the Brit wound up with the evidence of black magic, then she will be able to know that everyone with an alibi can kill the victims. She; however, wasn't afraid of someone like Cavendish.

The British girl is as good as dead.

Sucy humored her line of reasoning. With a feigned surprise, she asked. "How did Professor Ursula know my birthday is in December? I never mentioned it."

They watched as Akko's face fell. "Nooo!" she moaned before she looked at Cavendish, crestfallen. "You ruined our birthday surprise for Sucy!"

"Surely you do comprehend you ruined the birthday surprise yourself." She replied, snootily.

"NO! This is all your fault, Diana. You couldn't keep your perfect symmetrical mouth shut!"

Cavendish shifted slightly. "You find my mouth symmetrical?"

"Not just your mouth, your whole face!"

Sucy's eyes darkened in barely restrained anger. Her throat created a noise she hadn't heard in a long while.

" _Oh, what a feast to behold... two girls flirting,"_  Loa said the obvious with a snicker.  _"Not the first I've seen in decades."_

Cocking her head slightly, Cavendish implored Sucy to answer. "Did you just hiss?"

By now, Akko had finally seen the clashing auras between the two girls. Sucy chastised herself for ever thinking her best friend wasn't observant enough. Her grimace quickly made Akko try to dissipate her anger.

"Oh, Diana, you got some dust on you!" She proceeded to brush the supposed dirt off the blonde's shoulder.

To appease her anger, Akko knew what Sucy wanted. Sucy noticed Akko's nimble hands managed to pull a loose hair from Cavendish's uniform. Cavendish wasn't aware of what was happening away from her line of vision.

Professor Ursula—Shiny Chariot—would be proud of her adopted girl.

"Why, thank you." The blonde looked away from Akko, a blush coloring her cheeks.

Sucy grinned mischievously. Diana's obvious smitten features will be the end of her.

Cavendish blinked, managing to regain her bearings. "I've been meaning to ask. Are you two heading to the Kinsley wake after school?"

Sucy narrowed her eyes at her. She was aware that the Brit was hoping to read into her reactions with apparent questions to corner her and at the same time it seemed normal. Sucy knew she won't be able to show remorse at the funeral so she rather not place attention to herself.

"You mean... Thomas hasn't been buried until now?" Akko asked.

"Oh no, I meant the Sergeant." Cavendish clarified.

Sucy needed to think of a way to turn her down fast. "As much as we would like to show our condolences to him, he still hurt Akko. Not even in death that Akko is forced to feel sorry for him, and because we feel like so, we rather not show our faces. Other than the fact that we will receive animosity once we set foot."

"Better than fuelling the rumors that Akko is a killer," Diana said, compelling them. "If a ride is a problem, ease your worries. My chauffeur doesn't mind me bringing friends."

_Friends?_

Sucy furrowed her brow. So that was how Diana Cavendish works, attempting to get close to her via Akko. The quickest way to cut the blooming friendship between the three of them is to refuse. Yet, doing it herself would make her look unprofessional—particularly an asshole. She needed to find a way to convince Akko not to go as well.

"Do you want to go, Akko?"

Akko looked at them consecutively. "And see the lifeless bodies of the Kinsleys again? No thanks."

"The matter has been settled, don't you think Miss Cavendish?" she snarled.

"It appears so," she said, completely receiving the message.


	9. Chapter 9

"I got you her hair," Akko said. They were both on the way back to their flats, walking on the sidewalk. "Finally the Weird Sucy Manbavaran is appeased."

Sucy held on tightly to the short hair strand Akko handed to her hours ago. She had been holding onto it the whole afternoon with nothing but a huge grin on her face.

"Sucy, tell me honestly, is Diana your idol?" Akko asked.

A blank gaze was Sucy's only answer.

"I've heard of crazy fanatics holding onto the used tissues of their idols but man something is wrong with people like you."

"Call it what you want, Akko." Sucy's grin widened. "I'm having the best day of my life."

"Why do I feel like it's the worst day for everyone else?"

Sucy ignored her best friend's remark.

"Hey, Sucy remember the promise you made Chariot?" Akko said, calling her guardian by her real name when it was just them.

Sucy's eyes widened as a hit of memory came to her. She did agree that if ever Professor Ursula was to leave the city or country that Akko can stay at her place. It was a mutual understanding between then that Akko can't live alone on a flat without permanent damage to the building or to herself.

"That is if you don't mind at all." The corners of her mouth moved upwards in a silly grin.

Sucy couldn't deny her, even if she should. She was planning to kill Diana Cavendish tonight.

" _Are you doing, what I think you're doing?"_

Loa was right. The concept of having Akko in her flat—with her—and with a plan to kill Diana Cavendish no less—it was mind-boggling. There were so many possibilities she could pursue, but there were so many ways a perfect plan could wrong.

Then again she couldn't just break a promise she made. Maybe she can do it while she's in the bathroom.

" _Yes, that should do it."_ Loa concurred.

"Sure," Sucy said. "Though, I'm not letting you touch my kitchen."

"Aye aye, ma'am!" Akko saluted.

The moment they reached the flat, Akko excused herself. "I'll get some of my stuff and head over to your room."

"Alright," Sucy said. Sometimes it was nice that they lived in the same area. Chariot and Akko were on the ground floor while Sucy's room was on the third floor.

Sucy paused at the top of the steps before deciding she had to commit the murder quickly so she briskly walked to her flat number. She left the front door unlocked in case Akko came in and she was busy. Walking from the foyer to her bedroom, she shook her head, trying to gather her focus.

Glancing over her shoulder to make sure Akko wasn't directly behind her—as that had a habit of happening when both of them were in close proximity—Sucy locked herself in and went over to reach under the bed. She pulled out a box, giving it a slight shake.

She smiled when she heard the familiar contents rattle inside. With her free hand, she reached even further under the bed, her fingers searching for something. Her hand felt a huge sized book that she hid after deeming it was noticeable in her desk. She sighed in relief. Everything was as it should be.

" _Have you decided on how to kill her yet?"_

Her hands roam above it as if she was choosing which jewelry to choose. "I have. It's no fun to just kill her immediately. I want her to know in her slowly agonizing dying moment that I'm the one who killed her."

" _Good, but since the most important person in your life is going to live here with you, must be a long night for the two of us."_

"Yes, I know I should be sorry for I'm hiding you for the rest of the week in the deepest part of this flat room, but I'm not."

" _You're still mad about that time I overdid my work?"_

"I only wanted you to make the Sergeant a lunatic and kill himself! Harming Akko and causing her injuries are never okay!"

" _Oh Sucy, if you don't stop caring for her, she will become your weakness. I've seen your ancestors fall apart and die because of love."_

"And what would you know about it, Loa?" Sucy demanded. Hackles rising as she felt a sudden surge of defensiveness. "Unlike you, I have a hole to fill in. Akko has one too, and we fit each other perfectly."

" _I'm looking out for you, Sucy. No matter what you think. If you want that Eastern girl to stay with you she should have the resolve to stay by your side. She's got a backbone of steel—but with what's about to come in the near future, she needs titanium. People bully her and take advantage of her constantly; you can't always be there for her. If she let what they said and do pierce her skin, there wouldn't be any left on her to speak of."_

Sucy looked away from Loa, pretending to stare at the view outside the window while really fighting off the tears threatening at her waterlines. "You don't know a goddamned thing, Loa, so don't presume to tell me my own situation, because if that's what here for then you might as well fuck off, right now!"

She trembled with despairing rage as she spat those last few words, her clenched fists pressing hard into the surface of the table as she continued to stare unseeingly out the window.

" _Do you want me to kill Diana Cavendish on my own instead?"_

"No, I want to kill her myself." Sucy glared at the doll.

Loa chuckled, a dark brimming allure.  _"I recommend you to use your favorite one."_

"A poisonous mushroom it is," Sucy smirked.

Quickly retrieving the vial of poison that became her necklace for 16 years, Sucy found herself petrified all of a sudden.

" _What's wrong?"_

"Will Akko hate me if she learned I killed Cavendish?"

" _I highly doubt that."_

Sucy loathed the fact that she hesitated so she retrieved a needle and an injection she stole from the academy's reserves in her pocket and stared at poison vial her mother left her.

She loaded the injection, and her jaw dropped when she realized the vial instantly refilled itself with magic.

" _All vials are cursed to never be empty,"_  Loa explained.  _"It was your great great grandmother who cast the spell."_

Cavendish is well aware that she loved mushrooms. Every student and the teachers in the school know about the mushroom-eyed freak whose contact lens fell that one time.

The poison Sucy chose was from a death cap mushroom—a plain looking fungus species which contains deadly amatoxin and highly potent neurotoxins. Ingesting just one mushroom, even if it were slow-acting, is typically lethal and difficult to reverse.

Sucy stared at the strand of hair Akko got from Diana. It was sickeningly blonde like the full mop of hair on top of her head. She tied the hair around the doll's neck. At times like this, Loa is quiet. Only speaking when she's spoken to.

Sucy's heart thudded unevenly against her rib-cage as sweat trickled down her face. Sucy injected Loa exactly where the stomach should be.

"She'll be dead tonight." Sucy cackled.

" _Congratulations on ridding your enemy once more, Sucy."_

Sucy suddenly felt exhausted. Her stinging eyes flicked back and forth between the doll and the poison. She hunched forward and nearly quivering with stress.

A familiar voice sounded from the hallway. "Sucy?"

She quickly shoved Loa, and the book inside the huge box then hid it at the back of her dressing room where Akko will unlikely look. Sucy turned around and went to gather Akko as one thought kept repeating itself in her mind.

"I'll use your bathroom, okay?" Akko echoed.

"Okay!" Sucy shouted back before whispering to the doll hidden inside her closet. "Loa, I'm still upset with you, so don't think all is forgiven."

" _After tonight, that might change."_

Sucy walked out of her room to the kitchen and went over to the fridge. Her jaw dropped at the incredible amount of food in it.

"Oh!" Akko said from the bathroom, in a brink of remembrance. "While you were huddled in your room I managed to bring the rest of our food to your fridge."

"That answers this." Sucy deadpanned.

Hearing the water running in the sink as Akko washed her face; Sucy grabbed some ingredients and set them on the countertop. Beyond that, Sucy did everything without having to think about it. Sucy had done this cooking dinner several times in her life, but only when she's got the spare time.

After about 20 minutes of listening to Akko's movement inside the bathroom, and the cooking of food, Akko came downstairs with laundry in her hands.

"I'm going to put these in the washing machine," Akko said, poking her head over the pile of clothing. "I've got yours too."

Sucy flinched.

"What's wrong?" Akko asked from behind.

"N-Nothing," Sucy stuttered. When she said that, Sucy turned back to the food, refusing for Akko to see her face reddening. She couldn't believe she was getting so nervous.

_It was just Akko for mushroom's sake!_

Maybe the murder she committed tonight was greater reason to be nervous.

_Yes that could be it_

"Oh, thanks."

This felt too ordinary to be true. Sucy hadn't been able to feel like this for a while, and the thought of experiencing living with a roommate wasn't because of it. Sucy blushed for was the fact that Akko must have looked at her underwear and bras and pretty much everything.

This feeling of being domestic with the one she loved the most was slowly becoming her kingdom come.

Sucy sighed, from happiness.

"Here, it's done."

Akko came over to her and looked from over Sucy's shoulder at the two plates with a curry meal.

"Oh my! Chariot taught you how to cook curry?"

"Yeah but you're in for a little surprise."

"I'll take it!" Akko pecked Sucy on the cheek and grabbed her plate while brushing her arm with Sucy's side.

And for the second time that day, time became painfully slow as Sucy's brain attempted to coerce its body into action. It was a simple task. Sit next to Akko and eat dinner with her. Then sleep on the same bed.

Normally, nothing happened at this point, other than a feeling of elation and euphoria overcoming her; however, tonight proved to be different.

_Wanting to stay, and needing to go. Isn't that how life went?_

* * *

_**Diana sat**_  on a small bench outside the main doors to the building where the service was about to start. She was wearing a black dress, nothing too fancy but smart enough for the occasion at hand. She had delayed entering with the other attendants as she wanted to clear her head.

So much has happened in the last few days it all seems so surreal, Diana looked down at the dirt beneath her feet as she begun to play the week's events back in her mind. The past few hours all came in a blur that she suddenly found herself in such a state.

Sucy and Akko are inseparable, Diana mused. It was a predetermined event that Diana was able to talk to Akko alone without the company of Miss Manbavaran that one time. It was a strained effort for her to befriend the two of them without becoming an unwanted third wheel.

When she queried the duo to come with her to the Kinsleys', to observe how the Filipino would react at her victims' funeral. Diana noted that Miss Manbavaran spoke about this murder with great emotion yet at the same time; she does so in a very detached manner.

Even did she attended the funeral, Diana didn't dare look at the man's coffin or his grave as he was lowered down to the ground.

Diana's thought process hadn't finished when she heard the sound of approaching footsteps, lifting her gaze from the ground as she looked towards the approaching person. A soft smile crept across her face as she recognized them.

Andrew was clad in a simple black suit with a white shirt and black tie while Frank was wearing almost the same attire as save for his tie was white like his shirt and both boys had a white rose in the breast pocket of their jackets. Hannah and Barbara both exchanged hairstyles and were clad in black and white dresses, with heels and white roses clipped over their hearts.

Andrew's dark hair bounced softly as he approached before taking a seat next to Diana. "Enjoying the fresh air are we?" he asked, sitting forward a little.

Frank was unsure how to approach her so he merely followed stood beside Hannah and Barbara, as they watched them. Frank's facial expression was particularly furrowed as if there was something bothering him in any prospect.

Diana gave a soft nod before returning her gaze down. "I just needed to clear my head, it's been a long week." she sighed after she spoke, keeping her gaze towards the ground.

Through the corner of her eye, she saw Andrew nod in agreement towards her before looking forward. "You should stop, you know before you get hurt in the relentless pursuit."

"What pursuit?" Frank asked, innocently.

"I have a feeling they are talking in riddles, as they always do." Barbara failed to whisper to her peers as Diana and Andrew pretty much heard her.

"Yes," Hannah added. "Is it just me, or this two are—"

Frank somehow decided to cut her off right there. He began to hold onto his stomach as if the uncomfortable butterflies had gotten worse. Diana had not known her rejection would cause him such pain.

"Andrew, we came here so we can invite her in for some tea, right? It's cold out here."

"Right," Andrew said. He then looked towards Diana once more in a firm reminder. "We are here to pay respects, not here to investigate the cops."

"I hear you." Diana slowly stood with her companions following her steps towards the building.

Frank bumped into Andrew on the way in, causing Hannah and Barbara to giggle.

"You alright, mate?" Andrew asked him.

Frank laughed awkwardly, rubbing his forehead to ward off the embarrassment. "I might be just hungry."

"Good thing wakes are like a dinner party," Barbara bantered, "but in a somber mood."

Once they stepped foot inside the hall, Diana nearly broke her promise with Andrew. The funeral was brimming with questions and pieces of a puzzle that Diana needed fixing.

To start with, Diana sensed that even Sergeant Kinsley's peers were all not quite sure how to feel about the funeral. Sergeant Kinsley wasn't the best of a friend and he wasn't a good cop either. But it was mandatory for the Police Service to honor a member's death.

The account of what he did to a minor girl from a prestigious academy and the fact that he murdered a lawyer was also a sensitive topic. It wasn't mentioned in the eulogy but Diana knew it was burning in the back of everyone's mind. He was a divorced man and the only relatives left for him were uncaring cousins.

For the others, it really was somewhat off-putting, as if the world still venerated murderous cops. At the same time, however, they all had to admit that the late Sergeant was losing his mind for the injustice death of his only son. And the wake in honor for him was so that his spirit would settle down.

Diana probably would have appreciated everyone's attire as well. At that moment it was hard not to smile at things like Frank tugging uncomfortably at his tie during and Andrew nudging him in a failed attempt to get him to stop. Hannah and Barbara even promised to accompany Diana so that she wouldn't feel alone in a place full of men and they were there keeping their gossips to a minimum, never leaving her side.

It was these little things that made it all bearable, and Diana was all grateful for that. They had to be because the service itself was a strange mismatch between right and wrong. Really, it was impressive that they'd managed to have a funeral at all.

An hour later, when she could stall no longer and her stomach was protesting by means of aching pangs of hunger, Diana passed through the doorway into the hall and fixed her eyes on the table. A little bit of tea and sweets won't hurt. Diana poured herself a small cup of mint tea when she noticed it wasn't scalding hot anymore. She then knocked it back in one go, rather than reheating the pot, and then grabbed a blueberry scone and an apple.

The moment she munched on her scone, an overwhelming ache in her stomach emerged.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Any theories on what will happen next?
> 
> I'm thinking if I should still participate in the Dianakkoweek 2018 when I haven't even started yet and I already have a lot of things on my plate. Perhaps just two or three entries out of seven would suffice. Guess what I'm trying to say is that next chapter would be on July 23. Peace yo xD


	10. Chapter 10

Sucy woke up earlier than Akko's alarm and found that extracting herself from Akko might prove to be quite the challenge. As much as she desired to stay with Akko, and curl up next to her, she knew they had to leave for school, but Sucy could not possibly disturb the younger girl.

" _Why make it hard for yourself, just wake her up." The_  doll whispered to her from the black corners where Sucy hid her.

Sucy thought it was best to ignore the foreboding doll. Gently, she half pushed and rolled Akko away from her. The sleeping figure frowned and moaned in protest but thankfully stayed asleep. Leaning over Akko, Sucy pulled the sheets and covers back over her, and proceeded to tuck her in while watching a sleepy smile appear on Akko's face.

" _I won't leave the hiding spot unless you give me permission, Sucy."_

"Why not go and hide in my bag? Make sure Akko doesn't see you." Sucy cleared her throat. "I'll make breakfast while she's here."

" _As you wish."_

Sucy crouched over Akko, bracing her arms on the bed to either side of Akko to steady herself. Slowly and carefully, she lowered her head before planting a quick and soft kiss on Akko's forehead.

Normally, nothing happened at this point, other than a feeling of elation and euphoria overcoming her. Today proved to be different. Sucy didn't want to leave the flat anymore, but she was also excited to head to school and learn the news spreading over Cavendish's demise.

But Sucy continued to stand there, watching Akko sleep. Her breath caught in her throat, and her gaze transfixed when Akko was slowly awakening.

It was Akko's instinct to jolt her body to an upright sitting position to hug somebody in the morning. Oh, how wonderful it was to be Chariot. She got to be the unfortunate victim of Akko's morning hugs.

Sucy found herself moving into the embrace without hesitation, drawing the slender body up against her. Akko's slim arms found their way around her neck. A soft kiss pressed against her Sucy's cheek.

"Morning, Sucy," Akko whispered and cuddled Sucy's head into her shoulder.

Sucy's deathly pallor had a sudden coloring, particularly on her cheeks. "Good morning, Akko. Go take a bath while I make breakfast."

Loa was quiet all throughout the distance from their flat to the academy. Yet, Sucy knew the doll was hiding inside her bag. She rearranged the strap on her shoulder, feeling the weight.

Sucy debated whether or not to interlock her hands with Akko's. It was pretty simple, yet the easy gesture took a lot of mental effort and physical strain out of her and in the end, she failed to reach out for Akko's warmth.

Her heart was not ready.

Nevertheless, the walk to the academy was peaceful—with Akko's usual shenanigans and cheery hyper tone in the morning. It was almost pure, and without the troublesome Brit in Sucy's life. It was almost heaven.

Sucy and Akko arrived at school with 15 minutes to spare before their first class. They were on their way to Literature when masses of students in the hallways crowded with gossips on their long faces. She didn't bother to tune in, knowing who the dead person was. They clustered around; all of them seemed to float in and out. Some were wearing black in solidarity and carrying flowers to a makeshift altar by the auditorium.

" _Maji ka?_ " Akko shouted loud enough for everyone to hear. She received the news from a pink-haired Russian and a short German girl. It was typical of Akko to be sometimes insensitive. "That's horrible!"

Sucy couldn't help but smirk at the idea, picturing the looks on her Cavendish's and her friends' faces when they saw their precious President struggle with a headache, palpitations, and vomiting and were unable to do anything about it. That image in mind, she reached a hand out to her cheek, donning her best sneer.

Once her head had stopped spinning on her little fantasy, Sucy's eyes adjusted to the new view. She gasped.

Diana Cavendish was there.

" _She's alive!"_  Loa's hissed. Her tranquility disturbed as well.  _"She's proven herself as not a threat to be taken lightly."_

Sucy stared at her incredulously. "How come she's here? She's supposed to be dead!"

"What?" Akko questioned.

Spinning on her heel, Sucy shivered at Akko's proximity.

Akko had her hands firmly set on her waist, determined to get to the bottom of it. "Sucy what are you talking about?"

Her cold breath brushed against Sucy's cheek, causing goose bumps on her arms. Sucy gulped dryly as she stood like a statue. "Ahh, I mean..."

"Good morning." Diana gave them a small smile. Despite the makeup she wore, it was still obvious she had been crying the whole night.

Sucy muttered to herself while Akko turned up to her, asking. "Are you feeling alright?"

"Y-yes," Diana spoke nervously back. "I'm not ill, just terrified out of my wits. News travels fast, I suppose."

"Are you sure? Because you look like you just had a visit from the dead," Akko asked.

"Thank you, Akko." Diana's cheeks blushed pink. "For worrying about me, I better head to class." She flipped her hair first before walking away, her blonde hair trailing off until she became a blur.

Akko huffed, stomping on the ground. "Wow, look at her go, such a diva."

Sucy gritted her teeth, locking her jaw and staring straight ahead. She expected that Loa was going to hypnotize Diana or make her go crazy for her. Instead, the doll's voice echoed in her head.

_"Akko got the wrong hair. You killed another fair-haired person who glued to her which is why you had the wrong strand! Get the right one this time, and we will make her pay."_

"Oh, I could bury you, Cavendish," the Sucy stated, letting out a startlingly creepy laugh.

"Sucy! What's wrong with you, you're being too much!"

"Akko," she said. Just like that, she glared at Akko dead in the eyes. "I want you to tell me in detail, what you learned from the gossip."

* * *

 _ **She mentally**_  rattled off pleas to the Goddess she was named after for her exit to go unnoticed, but, as was typical for Diana as of late, they went unanswered.

"Diana!" Hannah and Barbara, their voices unexpectedly close, and the cold tea in Diana's stomach seemed to instantly congeal, leaving her nauseous. "Wait up a second."

"Yes?" Diana quipped, sweetly.

"Is your stomach acting up?" Hannah asked. "Because I totally saw you down that tea like water and I bet your stomach was empty the whole time. You have this uncanny habit of putting off the pleasures of eating until your stomach cries."

"Yes, Diana, we worry about you. Plus your stress levels are overwhelming." Barbara furthered

"True, it might just be excessive stomach acid, so please if you'll excuse me," Diana said, getting red in the face because of her poor decisions in health.

Diana nearly reached the doorway when Frank ran past her in a startling speed to head to the men's room.

She was stunned for a few moments before speed walking her way to the ladies' room.

_Inhale. One two three. Exhale. One two three._

The bathroom smelled bad. The colors of her dress contrasted against the dirty tiled walls. She wanted to splash her face with water, calm herself down, but it will ruin her makeup, and she spent around twenty minutes this afternoon putting it on. Instead, she leaned against the wall for a second and took a few deep breaths. She imagined herself growing bigger and bigger until she was larger than the Earth itself.

After a few moments, she walked back towards the hall.

"Diana!" Hannah called again. "We have a flask of coconut milk infused with apple cider vinegar if you want."

Diana lifted an eyebrow. "You do?"

"Totally, it's part of our diet because of its health benefits. It may help relieve the acid reflux symptoms. You should totally drink this." Barbara explained as she offered her flask to her.

"That's why we always have a bottle with us," Hannah said. "You're lucky this is the blend we have for today.

Diana graciously grabbed the flask, lifting it to her lips when the smell of coconut and cider greeted her nostrils. With reserved sips, her whole body shook at the involuntary reaction to the taste.

"Oh," Barbara said. "I could have warned you about that."

Diana's face scrunched up a bit before returning to normal. "Well, I got used to tea leaves. Crushed apple with coconut isn't exactly new to my palate."

Minutes or so, Frank returned from his trip to the comfort room. His face turning paler, he had an uncertain frightened expression as if he saw a ghost in one of the stalls while trying to keep up the bravado. His weird demeanor didn't go unnoticed by the rest.

"What's wrong with you, hey Frank?" Hannah asked him when he passed them by.

He was absentminded, focusing on a small task of sitting down next to Andrew in one of the sofas who looked concerned for him.

"Maybe he has the same problem?" Barbara suggested. "Let's offer him the drink."

"Hey, Frank?" Hannah called, but he didn't hear her, nor did Andrew.

As they made their way to him, overcame by nervous jitters, Frank got up from the sofa despite having spent less than two minutes sitting there, and instead began to walk out of the hall quickly, with his eyes downcast.

"Frank!" Diana shouted for him.

Frank refused to slow down, but it didn't make a difference. Diana was at his side in seconds, nudging him gently with her elbow. "Frank, have you gone deaf? We have called your name three times now."

"Oh," Frank muttered. "Did you? Sorry, I'm a little distracted—not feeling well."

"I figured that might be it," Diana said sympathetically. She caught a whiff, a strong and a faint smell of two different things. "Do I smell Attar of Roses?"

Frank grinned. "Dabbed myself with girly perfume if you will."

Diana's raised an eyebrow. She could swear she detected a hint of puke on him so the perfume was to distract the senses. "Andrew told me you didn't eat much at lunch. I wondered if you might be feeling nauseous."

"I do. I feel unnaturally queasy." Frank proceeded to explain when Hannah, Barbara, and Andrew had caught up by now. "You don't think you have medicine on you, do you?"

"Not really medicine, but it might help." Diana handed him the flask.

"Drink up, Frankie." Hannah grinned. "We have more of where that came from."

Frank placed the flask's rim to his mouth; it barely touched his lips when he started gagging. The four of them gasped in alarm as they watched the drink spill to the ground. His vomiting reflex was strong; Andrew immediately patted his back to soothe his lungs.

But it was no use. He coughed up blood.

There were a few seconds of still silence; Frank's eyes widened in horror, his gaze flew to them, pleading for help.

"Blood!" her friends let out a long, piercing scream.

Time did not appear to pass more slowly. Rather, Diana's mind worked more quickly in her panic. Frank started heaving his guts out, his hand instinctively holding his stomach and covering his mouth. He collapsed to the floor, groaning.

Diana's mind became a blank slate. Only after she looked down again did she comprehend the situation they were in.

 _Fuck,_ Diana cursed silently, her panic beginning to rise as she waited, prone and powerless to help him.  _Shite, shite, shite._ She should have noticed the symptoms hours ago, but Diana was insistent to stare the other way.

There was a pain in Diana's throat. Frank was lying stretched out. Diana had to help him, not knowing what to do—somehow paralyzed. Diana collapsed at her friend's side. She had no time left but she was able to process clues as Frank clutched on the floor. A headache, palpitations, vomiting, dry mouth, increased breathing rate, and he looked a little blotchy.

It could be caused by anything, but Diana wagered her life on it.

"He's poisoned!" Diana gasped.

"Diana, what do we do?" Hannah and Barbara turned to her. As usual, Andrew acted fast. He fished for his phone and dialed 112.

_What to do?_

There was nothing they could do. If they knew the poison and they had the antidote, they could surely fix this. They were in the mystery, and the poison was taking its time before it finishes its job. Only prayer can save him.

However, Diana doesn't believe that.

Doctors do not drop their instruments and bend their knees to pray for the Gods or God to save an endangered person's life. Somebody had to do something and the cops around the area could not defeat an enemy that does not embody a shape of a person.

"Quick!" Diana screamed. "Oral rehydration! He needs water with sugar and salt once he's done vomiting!"

She wasn't sure if it was the right call or what but she heard a scuffle, footsteps, and orders all around.

"SHIT!" Andrew almost threw his phone. With a hiss he looked around, begging. "Is there a doctor among us? This is urgent; the ambulance won't make it in time!"

When no one moved, she was prepared to create the mixture herself when a hand held tight onto her. Diana turned around to see Frank whispering not to leave her. Diana stared back at him helplessly. And an image of what he used to have emerged from the back of her head. This highly spirited boy that always had a crush on her since the day Andrew introduced them. Frank had never looked so pale and so weak. At least he wasn't coughing or vomiting anymore. His state reminded Diana of her mother—the day before she got taken away.

The memory had been etched onto her mind that even if she hid it at the darkest and deepest part of the attic, she constantly knew where to find it and how to unlock it. Her mother had been brave, she knew what was coming. But Frank was unaware of this.

Diana stayed by his side, despite the resulting chaos. Frank reached for her hand and held it tight. Little by little his strength washed away. Tears fill her eyes, but Diana attempted to hold them back.

A doctor in the area arrived with water filled with sodium and glucose he prepared. Andrew and Diana helped hoist Frank up to hydrate him before the ambulance arrives.

Diana quickly pressed her hands over the soothing muscles that would help lessen the pain as he vomited. She wanted to desperately try to staunch the blood that flowed like a thick river with each beat of his heart that came out of his mouth.

Andrew patted his cheeks slightly, calling his name multiple times.

Frank's head lolled to the side as he looked at his best mate, face pale. "Andrew," he breathed.

"Shhh, it's okay. You're going to be just fine. Stay with us."

Frank's breath came in shallow gasps, shaking from being afraid. Tears were leaking from Frank's hazel eyes. "Andrew. Am I dying? I'm scared. I don't want to die."

"You won't! You just have to keep your eyes open! Can you do that? Here, drink this, it will help" he brought the cup's rim to his lips.

Frank took modest swallows, but the hand that held on Diana's started to lose its grip. Diana's eyes opened in fear. Frank took a deep breath. "I... I—" he halted.

A sob escaped Andrew as he shook her head. "No. No, Frank, you're not dying. I won't let you die, okay? I'll never give up on you. You wouldn't dare give up on me, would you?"

Frank had another urge to vomit but he had no strength to do it anymore. Each blink became longer than the last, and his breathing slowed. He forced himself to look at Andrew's green eyes. "I'm sorry," he whispered. And he took a shuddering breath, letting his eyes slip shut once more.

There was no movement from him anymore. He was gone.

"Frank?" Diana gasped. "Frank, n-no, no..."

"Mate?" Andrew shook him. He frantically tried to rouse him, gently patting his face, but it was no use. "Frank?"

The body remained unmoving beneath him.

Andrew grabbed a fistful of his shirt, shaking him. The overwhelming sorrow was starting to shatter his grip on reality. "Get up, Frank!"

Frank's body was motionless. Andrew leaned close to him, pushing his messy blond hair back, leaving streaks of blood and vomit on his forehead, searching his face for any sign of life.

"Please don't go." Andrew dropped his face into the blond's chest and then he broke, weeping for his faded friend, gut-wrenching sobs wracking his frame.

Diana could only watch as Andrew grieved. Her limbs were no longer responding, a lead weight settling in her heart. Breathing became difficult. Her heart thudded and despite her best efforts, the brimming tears that had been momentarily kept at bay proceeded to boil over and spill down her cheeks. As she hastily wiped saltwater off her face with her gloves, she wrapped her arms around herself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I gave way too many hints that you guys mostly knew what was happening. I'll have to be more discreet, eh?


	11. Chapter 11

Diana was able to get up in the morning. Her night filled with nightmares and her morning thoughts haunted by Frank's death. She was not looking forward today but she had a duty to be there at school.

Her body was set in a motion when she took a shower and dressed for school. She was brushing her hair in front of the mirror, applying some makeup striving for a natural look when her mind did a rewind of the events last night.

It was a sight for inducing nightmares for her entire lifetime. It was a mystery why some detectives and police weren't scarred for life.

Diana stared boringly into her eyes at her reflection. As if, somehow she was waiting for the mirror her to move and talk some sense into her. She grabbed her makeup to hide the ugly marks that marred her pale visage.

After a long car ride, her memory of how she arrived at the academy was a hazy blur. All she knew was that her chauffeur was driving away.

"Our condolences Diana!" everyone immediately greeted her. Not knowing how their faces light up at the sight of her or even send a high pitched voice to her ears actually remind her that today was not a pleasant morning, but a reminder that Frank died last night.

Diana wasn't surprised at all when she learned that Wangari had written another incriminating article about Frank's untimely death and how the cops could not help a preventable murder from happening.

When she saw a friendly face in the crowd, Diana wanted to surround herself with that familiarity. Akko; however, was not alone. Seeing another face that haunted her dreams overwhelmed Diana with a sudden need to bask herself in shame. Though she was certain when Miss Manbavaran glanced at her, she noticed the flabbergasted expression plastered to the Filipino's face.

Despite the inane fear that developed, Diana still headed out to Akko.

"Something wicked came this way," Sucy murmured to herself, her playful eyes gazing at Diana. She looked like she was expecting to see a pair of red horns on Diana's head or something.

Diana paid no attention as she stroke a little conversation. Diana longed for something uplifting today and she was hoping that Akko's sincerity and childish behavior could somehow infect her.

However, with Miss Manbavaran beside the jolly brunette, it seemed impossible. Diana could feel the anger and disbelief 10 feet away so she quickly left their company.

She refused to linger in.

Today wasn't her day at all. As hundreds of students, staffs and even professors stopped her on her tracks to continue giving their condolences.

After fleeing the scornful and sympathetic gazes of everyone who have heard of the news, Diana swore under her breath and took off for her first period. On the way there she was hindered by gossipy girls and mocking boys twice and while she was normally good at dodging them, her scattered state of mind was a hindrance to her reflexes, and it cost her.

Thus, Diana was thoroughly irritated and harassed as she entered the Linguistics classroom five minutes late. The professor, an Irish woman named Anne Finnelan, paused in the midst of her lecture and after scanning Diana's disheveled appearance just shook her head sadly.

"Quickly take a seat, Miss Cavendish." The woman was kind but unmercifully biased when it comes to her.

Diana went up the rows. Her stomach sunk when she saw that the only available spot was, of course, at the back of the class, besides Andrew.

They gave each other a nod in acknowledgment, unlikely to discuss how they are after their mutual friend just died hours ago. Diana sat in silence for the next couple hours of class and refused to look at Andrew but nevertheless caught peripheral glimpses of him eyeing her peculiarly. Andrew didn't push through while Diana just took her usual meticulous notes and answered a few of the questions Professor Finnelan put to the class.

Diana eventually began to relax, cautiously optimistic that Andrew would do as asked and just leave her alone.

She should have known better.

Eventually, the chimes of the clock tower echoed through the castle at nine o'clock. Professor Finnelan hastily instructed, "Alright, don't forget your two-page essays about the evolution of English to submit next meeting; dismissed." Then bee-lined out of the classroom, muttering. "Ah, I have an appointment with the Headmistress. Another investigation is about to happen in this school."

As Diana hastily cleaned off her desk and began to re-pack her bag, eventually, it seemed, Andrew couldn't abide the suffocating quiet. He finally spoke up.

"So, Diana, what's gotten into you?"

Diana's jaw clenched. She opened her mouth to spit out some half-formed rebuke, but Andrew cut her off.

"Don't try to deny it." Andrew glanced around and then lowered his voice from a murmur to a hiss. "I know you're restless as I. Blytonbury Police Service couldn't even figure out how Frank got poisoned! A murder happened right under their noses!"

"I unquestionably don't fix the mistakes of every incompetent adult out there."

Andrew said. "Come on, Diana. What's got you in a pit? Unless the broody nature could only mean one thing... you got scared."

Diana scoffed at that, but even she knew that it wasn't very convincing. All of her things collected, she got up from her seat and stalked out of the classroom with Andrew hot on her heels.

"Tell me," Andrew demanded, speeding up. Diana refused to answer. "What are you afraid of?"

Diana made it halfway down the hall before fingers circled her wrist and jerked her back. She turned to glare at him, Andrew mirrored it, and his cheeks flushed red with frustration at Diana's silence and worry as clear in her eyes as her anger.

Confronted with Andrew's impatience and feeling her own frustration mounting, Diana suddenly felt very weary. She didn't know where Andrew got his strength to be able to function like this. His best mate just died and here he was, standing, confronting her, raving at her for not taking any action.

She sighed, her shoulders slumping a bit with the motion. She glanced around furtively, and, seeing that no one was about the corridor to witness her actions or their conversation and in one frantic move, she seized Andrew's elbow and yanked him into a nearby empty classroom.

"Fine, Andrew," she spat, "I will tell you what I figured out. But never speak ill of me as I tried to keep you out of it. Frank's dead because of my recklessness. And I'm convinced it's her all along. Sucy Manbavaran will be difficult. I believe she was trying to poison me instead of Frank and somehow she has miscalculated."

"Pardon?"

"He died because of me!" she bellowed.

"What are you talking about, Diana?"

She took a deep breath as he waited for her to start. Diana grew even more distressed as slowly, "I have foreseen this event. You did too, you wanted me to disengage before something happens, but I didn't. I thought I was ready, yet I let my bleeding guard down like an idiot. I should have f—" she wanted to curse out loud but she couldn't, "known better. I should have known that I was too bloody optimistic. I should have remained all the clearer by staying away."

"His death has left us bereft, but I'm ready to pick up after his bones."

"I'm not."

"You shouldn't be moping right now, and I'll be damned if you won't help me bring him justice."

"I'm reflecting on my actions." Diana shrugged at him. "I want no part of the harm, to come to me or to my friends—no matter how annoying the lot of you."

Andrew frowned but he was persistent. "It's your duty, isn't it? To help others?"

"I help those who are not dead, Hanbridge."

"You should definitely extend your Hippocratic oath to the murdered, Cavendish."

"Andrew, I can't be a Cavendish and a consultant detective at the same time. It was foolish of me to ever dream—"

"But your dear late mother was a Cavendish and an author all the same. She has time for her hobby."

Diana ticked her tongue. A flicker of amusement played across Andrew's face, almost as though he had heard Diana's thoughts and was agreeing with him.

Andrew gave a half-hearted laugh. "I'm hitting all the right nerves over here. Do I need to spell it out for you? Perhaps a career in solving crime beckons, Diana. You have a theory, I suppose, or at least a lead?"

"At least mother's hobby won't get her killed. Remember what I said about before, Andrew?" she said, showing him a perfect grin. "Sergeant Kinsley could be ruled out as a murder because we saw him take his own life."

"What does that have to do with it?"

"Everything," she scoffed. "You see, Andrew. Witnessing Frank's murder had me believing it was possible to kill someone out of the blue just like that." She snapped her finger.

Andrew gestured for his forefinger and thumb to nearly touch. "I am this close to thinking you've lost your mind. Seeing a person die by suicide and seeing a person die of poisoning are entirely different categories."

"I am that close to believing that possibility too." Diana sighed. "But it is time to stop the assumptions. While I can't prove that Sergeant Kinsley was killed, I can prove that Frank's death made it possible to lace him with poison without associating with him."

"What?"

"I don't think we'll be allowed to tamper the crime scenes." Diana mused, ignoring him.

"Can we at least look at files?" Andrew asked.

"We've been in the crime scene. There's nothing we can discover there that the police already haven't. It's a clean job. No DNA, no fingerprints, no witnesses." Diana said. "What we can do instead, is to investigate our killer and..." she gulped, pained to even say it. "Find her pattern."

Diana smirked, becoming herself once more. A girl who needed a sense of purpose and a purpose that came not just with inheriting the family business, but to feel like a hero.

"Oh, that would be a good motive, but the absence of incriminating evidence will leave us hanging."

"The search will be exceedingly tedious; but one must from time to time, outwork criminals and outthink them," Diana said, quoting a line before rubbing her hands on her skirt. "If you were working this case... What would your next step be?"

"Umm... inquire the whereabouts of potential victims?"

"Wrong, guess again."

"Ask the detectives working the case?"

Diana's impatience cracked through her cool demeanor. "We visit him. Let's head out to the morgue ourselves."

Andrew seemed like he was about to lose his lunch. "Why?"

"Dead bodies have secrets and tell stories," Diana said.

Andrew gave her his most sarcastic pleasant smile. "Why hello Frank, how are you mate? Would you mind telling us how you died? Because you know, you were too busy gagging as you die."

Diana's lips curved slightly upwards with the joke but rather distasteful when it was about a dead person they knew. She wondered how Andrew could control his grief. Seeing how he mourned an awful lot. "Nevertheless, let's have experts tell us what they found that we might have overlooked with our inexperienced eyes."

There was a knock on the door. Diana and Andrew craned their heads towards the person. A girl who has shoulder length dark purple hair and thin-shaped eyes of the same color, with long eyelashes was leaning on the doorframe.

"You know, since you two looked startled seeing a seemingly innocent passerby, it could mean you two don't know you're easily spied on."

Diana huffed. She didn't have time for this. "What do you want, Avery? The girls aren't here."

"I came in here after seeing you two suspiciously get inside here," Avery smirked, enjoying being at the upper hand. "And to think I actually thought you two took off in here snogging I was actually surprised when I overheard your topic."

Diana raised an eyebrow, assessing the Canadian. One thing she learned from Avery was that she hated tourists, she was prone to gossip, but she loved giving people prepositions and in return, she needs something in return. Also that she has a YouTube channel for her cover songs that no one listens to.

"You sound like you have an offer," she crossed her arms. "I'm listening, Avery."

"You seem super troubled that you couldn't get inside information about the Filipino transferee. Do you know what you need, Diana?" Avery asked.

"What do you suggest?"

"Baker Street Irregulars," Avery shoved her hands in her pockets. "Hire me and I will do your dirty work in uncovering the secrets of her character not easily accessed on paper."

"My apologies," Diana scoffed. "I refuse to indulge in your childish Sherlock Holmes fantasies."

"Says the girl playing a detective," Avery rolled her eyes.

Diana cleared her throat, slightly embarrassed. "Whatever. If you want to act as street boys who are employed by me as intelligence agents then you may."

"So we do get paid!" Avery beamed. "Oh, I can't wait to share my check with Mary and Blair. I told them we can get money by being gossipers but they won't believe me."

"Not unless you lovelies need shillings per day."

"As the future CEO of the Cavendish Hospital, you can be so uncharitable, Diana Cavendish. Just promise me I have extra cash from you."

"As long as the information you share is valuable."

"Sweet!" Avery did a little dance.

A sudden light bulb flickered above her head. "Avery, you don't happen to have Miss Kagari's number, do you?"

"No, I don't as of now. But give me an hour and I'll send her number to your phone."

"Much appreciated."

Avery knew that was her cue to leave. She was about to but looked back at them. "You already bought my silence. So don't worry about me spilling the beans to anyone else."

"I have complete faith in you, Avery."

"She won't be in any sort of danger, will she, Diana?" Andrew asked as soon as the Canadian retreated.

"She's on a fact-finding mission through gossip—a pure reconnaissance," Diana said. "I am certain Avery is smart enough not to take unnecessary risks. Now on a much-pressing matter, how do I get close to Sucy Manbavaran?"

Andrew clapping his hands together, "As I had mentioned before, she does not see you as a peer, so force her to."

Diana licked her dried lips and ignored the latter topic. "How am I going to do that?—force my company?"

"Fester her for days, it will be resolved," Andrew said.

"You're not serious." Diana crossed her arms. She then reached for her phone and realized it had not even been more than 10 minutes and Avery managed to get her Akko's number.

Andrew hunched, looking over her shoulder. "Avery needs her paycheck now."

"She probably needed to buy a new microphone for her vlog." Diana rolled her eyes before a huge grin plastered on her face. "Wish me luck; I'm inviting Miss Kagari to hang out with me on Saturday for lunch."

Andrew shook his head. "You mean you'll leave Frank's funeral early for her? What do you want from her, Diana? She seems to lack intelligence in pretty much everything."

"She's the only bridge I have to Miss Manbavaran, and I thought I already expressed my sentiment in knowing the Filipino doesn't like me. So I doubt she'll let me in. I have to go through Akko to get to her."

"Well, you are trying to get some evidence that she is a serial killer. Even if she is or isn't, she will definitely guard herself."

"True, but I'm quite accustomed to people not liking me," Diana said. "All I need to do is to prove my worth."

Andrew chuckled, remembering their early childhood where everyone never wanted to go near Diana. It was such an upgrade now. "That sounds like internalized misogyny's a pain."

"Oh, you have no idea."

"Well then, I have a reason to believe that Diana Cavendish would be amenable to the idea of fighting it like a bitch."


	12. Chapter 12

Sucy's life had always been chaotic and disturbing. It was an ordinary day in Sucy's life where she had been reading the black ancestral tome in her spare time. Enjoying as she marveled its information of millions of methods and ways to curse people. Such as instant painless deaths, slow gruesome deaths, excruciating torture, and puppetry. Sucy's favorite would be the curse her ancestors were known for.

 _Barang_  and  _Kulam,_ the spells were called. To infest the victim's body with insects and to inflict illness. She had attempted to use the curses to a random rat she caught days ago and failed to accomplish such task early on.

Frustrated, Sucy started with the simple spells. In time, when she harnessed the energy and the endurance she can endeavor another high tier spell.

Gone were those short happy days.

At this present moment, Sucy spiraled into despair at her failed attempt to kill one blonde girl.

She fantasized about how to kill her endlessly and painlessly so many times that she could derive pleasure from it. Sucy could kidnap her, trap her into a remote location, starve her to death, then flay her alive slowly, or even twist her fingers in ways unimaginable.

Her personal favorite fantasy so far was killing the Brit's loved ones in front of her as she begged for mercy.

" _Kinky, my dear, you're just like your grandmother in that aspect."_

Sucy was aggravated that sometimes Loa would read her mind without permission. Not to mention that only she can hear Loa talk was plenty annoying. Annoying because every so often an ancient spirit trapped inside a doll can be lonely and would often talk hours and hours to her when Sucy was in a middle of a fantasy or when she was busy listening to the professor or writing down her essays for class.

" _Had I mentioned that your great-grandmother would have sex with her victims before killing them?"_

Loa would often talk about the glory of the old days and how she loved how eccentric Sucy's matrilineal ancestors were. The doll would even let out a rant of criticisms about young people nowadays leaving paganism and forming religions about resurrecting humans or fallen angels who became demons.

Sucy had also been exasperated, debating whether to discuss the hair problem with Akko or the fact that the Japanese girl had been busy texting on her phone ever since classes ended. Nevertheless, she just watched as Akko's faces light up the second she received a phone message.

Since both girls didn't belong to a club, they both headed out of school and decided to have dinner at an affordable shop called Last Wednesday Society. Sucy was in no mood to cook and they did have extra cash. The shop would put American Hot Topic to shame with the unique and weird things they sell. The antiques and second hands as well were marvelous. They even have repair and maintenance services. If Sucy was lucky, she would be able to buy mushrooms for a sweet deal.

" _You may not have noticed but the shop is dedicated to the sale of different magical items as well."_

"You got me the wrong hair," Sucy said, bluntly, pushing Loa's thoughts away.

" _Ah... finally you started a conversation with her."_  Loa chimed in.  _"Sometimes it's annoying when your head is filled with thoughts because only I can hear them. If I hear another thought about your lust for revenge for the Cavendish girl I will—"_

"Akko, you got me the wrong hair," Sucy repeated, this time louder to shut Loa up.

The Japanese girl was about to shove a forkful of cake inside her mouth. "What?"

Sucy was not amused, her visible eye widened with anger. "You didn't give me Diana's hair. It was a different person's."

"Whoa slow down there." Akko brought down the fork after shoving a huge slice down her throat. "I have like... had to let that sink down first... and a couple of questions to ask because all of a sudden you wanted to talk about Diana's hair."

" _She's such a blabbermouth. Makes me wonder your rationality why you are so attracted to her."_ Loa observed, a little annoyed. Sucy hated it when people talk bad about Akko even when it was slightly true.

"How did you know it wasn't hers?" Akko asked.

Sucy nibbled her lower lip, careful nitpicking the words to come out of her mouth. "Because it's shorter than her usual hair and it's not as blonde as hers."

"Oh, are you like those girls who say that raven, coal, and ebony are different?" Akko waved her arms all around, it seemed like she was dancing while on a class presentation.

"Yes, I'm pretentious like that," Sucy said, and unlike Akko, she kept her arms rested on her sides when talking. Sometimes, her limbs became invisible as they merge with her torso. "It's not Cavendish's hair. Get me a piece of her hair."

"Okay, but why would it not be hers when you saw me grab it from her shoulder?"

Sucy slammed a fist to the table. "She must have shagged some bloke and she didn't get rid of all the evidence!"

"Whoa, she's not like that at all, right?" Akko's cheeks became puffier.

"Of course she's not. I'm being sarcastic, Akko." Sucy gritted her teeth. "If she did shag somebody it would be another girl's hair."

"Whoa slow down again. Are you telling me, she's gay?" Akko perked up. "How are we sure the hair isn't from a boy?"

She was so close to pulling her own hair in frustration. "Akko we've talked about this."

"I know!" Akko raised her hands up, surrendering. "No judgments!"

"Akko, you're bisexual."

"You don't get to label me of my own identity!" Akko pounded the table, causing other patrons of the shop to stare at her. "I'm still figuring it out, okay! And maybe she is too, but why would she glance at girls when she can have every guy she wants."

"Ahh, dear customers," the proprietor of the shop approached them slowly. He was a Chum Lee lookalike. "Quiet down, some people love the dark, mysterious and quiet ambiance the place gives."

"Oops," Akko gulped, bowing. "Sorry."

" _That man over there is Koschei the Deathless. It seems like he's sick of abducting men's wives and now into the business of selling dark arts."_

Sucy blinked. She mentally added on her to-do list to ask Loa about that later. So she gave him a nod, to show that they got the message then stared back at Akko, "Okay you know what? We've gone off topic. Just make sure you pull it off from the roots of her hair this time."

"Well, you're lucky." Akko waved her phone. "She asked me to hang out with her this Saturday."

"She did what?" her voice rose a little louder.

Koschei the Deathless, now a proprietor, stared at her disapprovingly.

" _Quiet down I say!"_  Loa warned with a feverish tone.  _"Sucy, it is needless for me to remind you not to let your obsession get us into trouble with other supernatural creatures."_

Sucy took countless of deep breaths before her temper finally calmed down while dozens of ideas were forming in her head as she schemed to sabotage their little date. "I'm sorry, Akko. What was it you said?"

Akko decided to tread on carefully. "I said... that Diana asked me to hang out with her this Saturday."

"How did she get your number? Did you give it to her?"

"I don't know, maybe she has her resources!"

"Oh," Sucy's heart dropped. She had duties to do at her part-time work in the flower shop; her shift was always during weekends because of the schedule.

"Yeah," Akko laughed awkwardly. "I'm pretty sure I did something wrong or one of the students or professors complained about me and she will give me an earful."

"I doubt that. Sucy's head wondered about. She didn't like that Akko have sympathy for the blonde and she hated the idea of them spending time together. But to remove Cavendish from their lives, Akko needed to get close to her.

Sucy couldn't believe the words that came out of her mouth. As twisted as she is, she scooted towards Akko, pulling a loose strand of her hair for demonstration. Akko watched her in a daze. Her chocolate brown hair somehow contrasted the oddly pale skin of her friend.

"You should go, but this time. Get me her real hair strand. Don't let her know of course."

* * *

" _ **What are**_  you doing here, Miss Cavendish?" The man in a white coat asked. "Do you want to be an intern?"

Diana and Andrew luckily arrived at the Blytonbury Police Service Building before closing hours after school. True to what Andrew told Diana, they might have a hard time convincing the medical examiner at the police morgue to let them see the body.

"Nope, I'm only here because I was born with a type of inquiring mind that often gets me into trouble," Diana answered. "Also, we want to see the body."

The medical examiner looked blankly at her, blinking a few times at her request. Diana knew he would cave in, for his familiar relations with the Cavendishes.

Gradually, he asked. "Do you, Miss Cavendish, have the nerve... the audacity... the unmitigated gall... to see your friend's corpse again?"

"I've seen worse," Diana said. A faint memory of her mother in her deathbed emerged from her deepest memory.

The medical examiner sighed but he relented. He brought them to the mortuary cold chambers and pulled one chute out.

There he was, lying down on the cold metal, clad only with a white blanket to cover his nakedness. Frank's body was pale and stiff. The sight of him set an uncanny feeling to rise up from her stomach.

Diana could tell Andrew was close to fainting.

"Well, this autopsy report is just as mysterious. He had suffered from hepatotoxicity, a chemically driven injury that causes liver damage. Furthermore, his other organs begun to fail, leading to his death. The forensic team also reported that there was nothing in the food or drinks or anything else in that funeral. It was as if the poison miraculously appeared in his stomach."

Diana crossed her arms, pensively. "There is no way it simply miraculously appeared as you put it. Perhaps inhaled or injected."

"Then we would have seen some poison in his bloodstream. He had no wounds or abrasions apart from a thorn cut on his index finger."

"And it didn't prove to be the entry point of the poison?"

"There was no powder or liquid residue." Doctor Parker said. "With our kind of technology, I would be able to tell even a small amount. But alas, the forensic team searched everywhere and found none."

"What could you tell us about the poison that killed him, Doctor?" Andrew asked.

"The poison can be found from a death cap mushroom which is to say unfortunately for the reason that it can be easily found in forests. Even kids or adults who aren't accompanied by experts would gather edible mushrooms and mistake it as harmless. To the untrained eye, the mushroom is rather plain looking. It's one of the two fungus species contain which deadly amatoxin where symptoms take between five hours and a day to manifest and difficult to reverse when it's too late. Ingesting just one mushroom is typically lethal. The amount of which he took was from two whole mushrooms."

"So that means... Frank could have ingested it somewhere else." Andrew nodded.

"There are other options still." Doctor Parker said. "Some poisons are transdermal and can take effect simply through touch. Some require being swallowed; some are more effective when given through an injection. Some have a very strong taste or a distinct texture, while others might easily dissolve in alcohol and not water."

"I highly doubt that," Diana said. "Those new suggestions don't even add up, Doctor, I reckon you are failing to notice that."

"I kid, Miss Cavendish. Merely a food for thought."

"There must be another angle to this." Diana exasperated, her thoughts wondering all over the place.

"You didn't seem to be the joking sort at first glance, doctor," Andrew said, couldn't pass the opportunity to ask so he buckled up the courage. "Since when have you been itching to ask the unmitigated gall line in real life?"

The man gave him the biggest grin he could muster. "Ever since I caught up with the Night Fall series my daughter has been obsessed with. She doesn't know I started a month ago."

A small smile crept Diana's lips, all those hints were blatantly obvious yet the girl kept hiding her obsession with her best friend. "Thank you for confirming my suspicions that Barbara reads Night Fall, Doctor Parker."

"You're welcome Miss Cavendish." He said. "I know she wanted to hide that she loves it, but I don't think she should. Girls are allowed to enjoy girly things."

"Diana should like Night Fall instead of Sherlock Holmes." Andrew scoffed. "But then again we need that Holmes craze right now and I'm certain there is other girly stuff she likes that she hides right now."

Diana wanted to slap him so hard when her thoughts traveled to Shiny Chariot the magician. "I don't even like Holmes."

"You jest me."

"Not at the moment, no," she said.

Barbara's father was all too amused at where the conversation was heading and Diana doesn't want audiences.

"We appreciate your help, doctor. Andrew and I will take our leave." Diana picked up her pace to leave the building despite Andrew's confused look.

"That's it?" Andrew followed her as she kept walking. "We just show up unannounced and leave as soon as possible?"

Diana had to exercise impressive restraint to stop from replying sarcastically. "I found a lead."

"Tell me this is logical at least. As far as why most of the speculation is too dangerous and implausible to indulge until we know the truth."

"You heard the expert. The poison is slow acting and upon ingesting a person has five to 24 hours left to live. If he didn't get poisoned at the venue then it must be somewhere else. Before school, did he personally go to a flower shop to buy them?"

"Umm no," he paused, recalling. "He did order them."

"Do you know where he ordered the bouquet of flowers?"

"Yes I do, I have the address too," Andrew said. "You're not suggesting that the flower shop delivered an extra package of mushrooms and Frank found himself eating it instead of merely returning it back or throwing it away like a decent person."

"Yeah, the flowers bug me. The delivery could be sabotaged or not. That's the sole reason why we must go there—inquire a little so my bothered little head would calm down."

"Hold your horses. What about the school?" Andrew asked, reviewing all possible options. "What if he got it from there?"

"If you are insinuating that Frank eats raw mushrooms he picked up at school then clearly you've lost your touch. Even if he was that mental, we have botany classes and botany experts teaching those classes. If a rapid death cap mushroom grew inside its perimeters I'm certain they are dealt with and of course, if he was confirmed to be poisoned by someone at school... she will be there."

"She?" Andrew asked, wanting her to clarify. "The late Sergeant Kinsley did call in the Yard. Is she your connection from Scotland Yard?"

"Yes, and I overheard Professor Finnelan earlier today. The teaching staff had an emergency meeting."

"Isn't it about another investigation at the school?" Andrew asked. "Why haven't we got orders that we'll be taking another week off?"

"Because Frank's death had not occurred inside these walls, but it started there," Diana stated.

Andrew's eyebrows shot to his hairline, "And the flower shop?"

"I merely have a good feeling."

He crossed his arms. "Should we add psychic powers to your already considerable list of accomplishments?"

"No, just an exceptionally good sense of solving puzzles," Diana said, heading straight to their car where her chauffeur opened the backseat door for her. She stared at the time on her phone and climbed the backseat of the car. "Now, we have time to spare before we head home, let's go to this flower shop and pay a friendly visit to my connection."

"Had they found anything good?"

"Given your low expectations of authentic police investigative skills, Andrew, you may be surprised to hear that they have found."

"So you mean to tell me, you are lagging behind." Andrew then fixed his tie with a wolfish grin. "I reckon I should help you in trying to win Miss Kagari's favor."

Diana gave him a pointed look.

"Stop staring at me like that, you could burn holes." He scoffed without looking at her. "Overprotective much on a girl, how could you expect to retrieve information if you treat her like you are courting her?"

"Good officers are familiar with the idea of treating people like people. You have to coax information out slowly without any possible side effects!"

"She's not a child!" Andrew raised his voice, similar to hers. "But I will bow to your expertise when it comes to wayward teenage girls. No big rush, no worries, it's not like you are on a thin fine line when pursuing your only potential witness."

"I will do my best, accordingly."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone, we all know that this fic is walking down a dark path. So I was just asking if you guys are comfortable if I would write sexual relationships and endeavors once the characters get to confess their feelings. If yes, should I write somehow explicit ones or toned down/implied?


	13. Chapter 13

Sucy was passing through the streets of Blytonbury at six in the morning, carrying a box of milk she bought on the way back to her flat. A small round golden shaped locket now nestled at the crevice of her neck.

She woke up way earlier on a Friday morning, around five to sneak into a house she was familiar with. She knew that the owner wouldn't be there at that time so she used the opportunity.

From her coat pocket, Loa mused.  _"You are holding onto your beloved's hair."_

"I'm not thinking what you're thinking."

" _Oh, so the thought of controlling or killing her never crossed your mind?"_

"I am holding onto it because it's a piece of her," Sucy said, a hand clasping the golden locket where she neatly rolled the hair and hid it there for safekeeping. "A piece of her I want to always be with."

When she passed by a window shop selling televisions, she stopped by to see what old movie it was playing. She recognized that movie from one of the Orphanage's old tapes required for them to watch.

She hasn't heard it for so long it felt like she heard it for the first time. Which she had to hear over and over again like a needle stuck in a scratched record: "And remember, children, God sees everything! God will see what evil you do behind my back! And God will be the one to punish when I don't!"

"People live their lives probably thinking that their opinions are the absolute truth."

Loa cackled devilishly, akin to an old crazy woman who lived in poverty of the 1700s.  _"And what is your absolute truth, Sucy?"_

"Indignation," Sucy said before catching a sight of a little arachnid on the glass window. "Oh look, your everyday normal British venomous spider!"

" _Are you going to kill someone with its poison? You're losing your creativity."_

"The lowly spider can't even successfully kill a person with access to healthcare." Checking her pockets to see if she has anything to put the spider in, like a spare empty vial or empty matchbox, Sucy sighed—a heavy one. "Loa, can you keep a spider inside your body?"

" _You want it to die?" Loa asked._ Like the people around Sucy's small circle, Loa was multi-talented. Sucy sometimes wondered how she got to be so blessed to be surrounded by so many skilled people or a doll. Loa's one particular specialty was sarcasm at Sucy's expense.

Sucy gave her usual response, rolled her eyes and sighed like a martyr, "Unless you have an alternate option, then no."

" _Why is the spider important?"_

"It's been a while since I have a living pet. Or even a dead one, Dr. Adams told me to get rid of them all."

" _I'm glad you don't treat me as a pet but now you're treating me like a container."_

Sucy snarled. "Obey me or I will stuff you in my dirty laundry."

" _NO, NOT THE LAUNDRY! YOU VILE WOMAN!"_ Loa flew from her pocket and floated towards the spider.

Ever so vigilant, Sucy looked around to verify if there were any people or security cameras that could catch a glimpse of the floating voodoo doll.

The spider immediately saw the upcoming danger and made a jump for it but Loa was faster and split herself from the frontal area in two and trapped the fleeing spider into her cottony grasps and trapped him inside.

As soon as Loa's stitches tied itself, she stared at Sucy hard with those buttony eyes, absolutely fuming.  _"Are you happy now?"_

"I suppose," she admitted with a faint half-smirk, before seeming to lose herself in thought for a minute, grabbing Loa midair and hide her back in her coat, continuing her morning stroll back to her flat.

Akko still hasn't woken up when she arrived so the milk she bought as an excuse was useless after all. But she shoved it into the fridge. It was almond milk, after all, it won't give them stomach aches.

"I'm so excited today!" Akko chirped loudly, scaring the wits out of Sucy. "Chariot's arrived! But she won't be able to rest much."

"Why?" Sucy was in the middle of cooking their breakfast. She was halfway done when Akko finished showering and went down to the kitchen anticipating their meal.

"She says she needs to go to the Headmistress." Akko shrugged.

"I reckon she's in trouble for taking an early leave of absence."

"Well, could be, but now we're totally ready for your birthday!" Akko inhaled deeply, taking in the enticing waft of cooked food. "What's the occasion? You look like you're having a breakfast party?"

"I have a certain feeling. Not sure if it's bad or good. Reckon we both need a full stomach for the rest of the day."

"Yay!" Akko jumped, twirling towards the fridge. "By the way, Sucy, I didn't know you were into voodoo dolls!"

She could hear her own heartbeat falter. "Excuse me—what?"

"Sweet! We have milk!" Akko dug into the fridge and poured herself a glass. Her cheeks powdered pinkish red. "Aww, don't be shy; I saw your doll inside your bag."

"Akko!" A low current of heat rippled from Sucy. "Did you go through my stuff without permission?"

Akko held up a finger, finishing up her glass of milk before defending herself. "Hey, I didn't go through it."

Sucy blinked, unable to concentrate at the sight of Akko's milk mustache. "T-then how did you know?"

"I see it whenever you open your bag to get your pen or books. It was obvious from where I stood." She said, nonchalantly. "You thought you were being discreet in hiding her like that. There's nothing to be ashamed off of loving cute things, you know."

_Damn it._

"If you say so... could you help me set the table?" she asked, covering the fact that she was agitated Akko knew of the doll's existence.

"Aye aye!" Akko saluted and went over the cabinet to retrieve the utensils.

" _You weren't being careful."_ Loa's voice emerged from the coat's pocket she hung on the clothing rack.  _"Continue pretending you are in a perfect domesticated life with her while you still can. When everything goes down, you know you have to deal with her."_

_Stop being a spoilsport._

" _I'm telling the truth, Sucy. She's smarter than she appears to be. She will learn soon enough. You have to act now."_

Sucy repeated the word mushrooms in her head to block the doll out. In doing so, she finished frying eggs, pork sausages, rashers of bacon, and hash browns.

"Also Sucy, I woke up bleeding."

Usually, when someone told Sucy that passage she had to mull over and ask if she looked like she cared, but when Akko asked her that, Sucy just knew. "DID YOU BLEED ON MY BEDDING?"

"I will wash your laundry, okay! Thank god you have a spare tampon on your drawer."

Sucy crinkled her nose at the thought of bloody murder in her bed. She pushed the thoughts away and started heating a can of mushrooms and beans to accompany the fried foods when her flat's doorbell rang.

" _Oh, who could it be?"_ Loa asked, stealing Sucy's thoughts from her head.

She wiped her oily hands with a paper towel before answering the door.

"Sucy."

Sucy's face went cold, glaring at the woman's gray face and gray eyes, and her stern resolved, but her body looked thinner than it did last month, though it made her anvil jaw more prominent. Even Akko gasped at the unexpected visitor.

"Hello, mother."

"You don't have to be formal... daughter." Her voice was controlled, but Sucy heard the anger anyway.

Sucy clenched a fist to keep calm. Blood pounded in her ears, pressed on by a rising heartbeat. "What do you want?"

The woman had a brown satchel over her shoulder and was wearing a black beret, red coat, and black pumps. Her luggage was beside her. "May I join you for breakfast?"

Sucy was silent, observing her. She was aware that her foster mother was out of town for a business trip for three days before returning back, though Sucy wondered why Dr. Adams would visit her instead of her own home that Sucy infiltrated a mere hours ago.

She was sure it was not just because of free breakfast.

Sucy merely nodded and shouted an order behind her. "Help her in would you, Akko."

Akko nodded. She took Dr. Adam's coat and hanged it on the clothing rack next to the coat where Loa was hiding and grabbed the luggage in while Sucy neatly divided the food onto the three plates and added the mushrooms and beans with spring parsleys on top of the eggs and served them.

When all were seated, Sucy stared at the table-top, looking as if she might burn a hole through her plate. She wanted to look anywhere but the woman in front of her. Her cheeks are drained of color, pale as bone.

"Some people asked about you yesterday afternoon." Dr. Adams spoke conversantly, observing the meal Sucy prepared. Despite her weariness, still, she poured herself a cup of tea with the still hands of a surgeon.

They both sat at both edge of the table, facing each other. It burned to be near her. It was a morning full of anxiety, yet Sucy thought it would not start like this.

With her eyes still on Akko, watching the Japanese girl devour the last bites of her meal, Dr. Adams curled her lips. "Careful Miss, what are you a child? Would you like some tea?"

"Umm, no thanks, doctor, I'm good." Akko politely declined the offer of hot tea for she, unfortunately, had to eat breakfast in between them and she wanted nothing but to seem small.

Sucy did her best to be polite, although she has little to say, especially with Akko so close, inhaling everything on her plate. Sucy glanced at her, here or there, hoarding brief flashes of her face. Akko's jaw clenched and her throat working. If Sucy didn't have her pride or her guest, she might run her knuckles over Akko's cheeks, close against smooth skin.

" _Just kill her, why don't you just kill her?"_

The thought of killing her sang through Sucy's blood, but she will have to be patient. She ignored the doll. For an ancient being, Loa could be stupid sometimes. If she killed Dr. Adams, she would only be helping Cavendish's investigations.

"Who were they?" Sucy asked in a low voice.

"At the flower shop," she scooped some beans on her spoon. "The manager informed me somebody asked if a Sucy Manbavaran worked there the past week."

"What did they want from me?"

"I want you to tell me why they asked for you, girl." Dr. Adams said before popping the entire spoonful in her mouth.

Sucy's jaw clenched, grinding her teeth together so she doesn't smile. "I don't even know them."

"A blonde girl and a dark-haired bloke about your age," she snarled.

The description rang a bell inside her head. "Oh them, they belong to the Student Council from school."

"What did they want from you?"

" _Kill her."_ Loa's voice boomed.  _"Just end your misery."_

Sucy pondered for a moment and exactly knew why they searched for her there, but her foster mother had no clue. For all she thought, Sucy must have acted out badly or somehow revealed their secret—the one about their shared past that Dr. Adams prefer not to roam around town.

"I don't even know. So please, cut me some slack."

Dr. Adams spat, her cheeks going red. She gulped at her tea with angry gasps, draining the cup. The liquid calmed her though. When she set down the empty cup and rested her chin on her hand thoughtfully. "It will be December 31st soon, you will turn 18. So you have more or less two weeks to obey me before I set you off on your own."

"Thank you, I'm internally grateful."

" _Sucy, we didn't just get a piece of her hair from her brush for nothing!"_ Loa was by now, practically screaming to her ear, like a dark conscience as sinister as a demon.  _"Give me your orders so I can imagine what horrors we'll inflict on her. The hair we stole from her dresser is with me."_

Dr. Adams merely raised one shoulder, shrugging. "When you turn 18, our hell lives will be finally over. We'll get rid of each other and my debt with my sister would finally be paid."

Somehow, Dr. Adams' reason grated on her more than anything else. It's hard to hate the woman in a time like this. Sucy remembered that the doctor was just roped into this arrangement with her. And then, of course, Sucy would remember the rest. What her foster mother did to her, the verbal abuse she gave Akko and Chariot—who did not deserve to be treated horribly.

Sucy murmured icily, trying to keep her thoughts at bay. "Is that all you wanted to say, because if you must know, Akko and I have school."

Dr. Adams pushed her chair away from the table and stood. "Just be careful. We don't want anyone knowing about the truth of our arrangement. Tongues wag cruelly in this neighborhood."

"Tongues wag cruelly all across this town." Sucy rolled her eyes.

Her guardian raised an eyebrow at her behavior. "When you turn 18 you are no longer under my guardianship and I will fly away and take a long vacation away from you and my problems." She bristled. The mask of control threatened to slip and she busied herself with an already pristine coat, flicking away a piece of dust that doesn't exist on her shoulder.

" _Kill her now please?"_

_Grant me a birthday wish, Loa, wait for December 31._

" _Her death will be on the skies."_

With a smile on her lips, Sucy replied loud enough for Dr. Adams to hear. "I suppose that's the best we can hope for."

* * *

" _ **We have**_  a new teacher in the middle of the semester?" Akko asked as soon as their three other troublemaker friends told them the news.

"Yeah," Amanda said, her hands resting behind her nape. "We heard the old ladies talking about it when we snuck into the faculty room to steal back Cons' Stanbot."

Sucy tuned out of the conversation since they greeted each other in the hallways. She even tuned out Loa who endlessly chastised her because she stuffed her inside her pocket.  _"You have small pockets! I feel like I can't breathe—metaphorically! Reminding you that the spider is still inside me, I can feel him clawing his way out of me. Do you know how aggravating this feels? Don't make me wish it upon you!"_

She bit her lower lip, focusing on her new class schedule on the printed paper that the school hastily implemented. Classes were supposed to have started two hours ago but there was an assembly that lasted for an hour and a half where they explained that there were new staffs joining in and that additional classes were being implemented by the law.

But the fact that Constanze's little robot companion ticked a professor intrigued her.

" _I like being inside your bag! The ventilation is way better! Please, I am a sinister doll with feelings."_

"Stanbot was confiscated?" Sucy asked, pinching her thigh casually.

Loa let out a hair-raising scream that Sucy regretted. _"What did you do that for?"_

"Yup, it was such a dick move, Professor Finnelan hates anything fun," Amanda said, beside her, Constanze looked more grumpy than usual and Jasminka was offering her various sweets and confectionaries that she was able to smuggle inside the school from her mystery school pockets.

"Why would she? Everybody knows the robot is Constanze's speaking aid."

"I know right!" Amanda crossed her arms. "It's so totally unfair when you remove a disabled person's aid device! So I took the matters into my own hand!"

"She will be so shocked to find out Cons had it back," Akko said, grinning. "She'll know it's you."

Amanda chuckled, crossing her arms. "She knows, but unless she has proof to back up her claim then it's inadmissible to the court."

"People will have to believe that Cons manufactured a new one," Jasminka said. "Cons is a genius, that's enough proof. The worst Professor Finnelan can do is at least give Amanda detention for bad manners."

"That's where you'll find me if you can't see me in the club," Amanda said, proudly.

"Why would she hate this little robot though?" Akko asked, bending down a little. "It's so cool! It's got everything!"

Constanze nodded profusely and enthusiastically began to show Akko the new features while; Amanda stared at her and held her gaze.

"What happened to you Sucy?" Amanda noticed, "You looked more depressed than normal."

" _Redhead, have you met Sucy?"_  Loa then shrieked as soon as Sucy pinched her.

Sucy's lip curled at Amanda's question, but any retort died in her throat. She knew that the dark circles under her eyes were more prominent, but probably it was the tense set to her mouth that gave her away. "It's nothing." She waved a hand, dismissive.

"Dr. Adams visited her flat this morning," Akko stated.

Amanda shrugged. "This is so sad, Stanbot play despacito."

Baring her teeth, Sucy prepared for a speech to reprimand Akko about telling people about her business when an unknown authoritative voice startled the group.

"That's a cute little robot right there!"

Sucy's gaze came in contact with a young woman clad in a suit and a large red cape. She appeared to be around Professor Ursula's age, only taller. Her eyes were a shade in between green and blue and painted with a dark pink eyeshadow. Her whole demeanor shouted excitement and innovative that Professor Finnelan might start pulling her hair out in frustration upon seeing her.

"Who are you again?" Akko asked frankly.

"Hello kids, I'm your new subject teacher." She braced her hands on her hips.

"What are you teaching?" Akko asked. Their conversation about the little robot died out as they glanced at the Professor like kindergarten students.

"Any of the Social Studies kind," she smiled, although it didn't reach her eyes.

Akko fished for her printed paper inside her pocket and checked her schedule. "Oh! Are you Crescentia Cruz? I have you for Philosophy!"

"Oh, I have you too."

"We don't!" Amanda offered.

"We have you for Geography," Jasminka added.

"That's too bad." She said, yet a dangerous smile danced on her lips. "You kids can call me Professor Cress. It's nice to meet all of you children."

"Likewise," Akko raised a hand, unknowingly rising up her foot in a girly pose.

Professor Cress checked for the time on her wristwatch. "You better head your classes now,"

"We will!" Akko said, as their friends went on their merry ways while Sucy sighed, waiting.

"Psst, mushroom eyed girl," Amanda poked at her shoulder.

"What?" she hissed.

Amanda glanced at the surroundings first before leaning closer to her and whispered to her ear. "What sort of trouble did you and Akko go into this time, huh?"

"We've been into a lot of troubles. You might have to be specific."

"You know, there's a group of girls asking around about you guys in whispering corridors and toilets. Dude, I thought you might just want to know."

"What do you mean?"

"Asking about some stuff, I'm not sure."

"Can I get names?"

"I didn't get them." Amanda gave a small, self-conscious shrug. "I never saw their faces either. I locked myself in a toilet stall puffing my daily dose of smoke when I heard a girl definitely with Canadian accent asking about Akko's number."

"Okay, thanks," Sucy said, and then a long silence came after. She hadn't actually even thought about that, and Sucy wished the redhead hadn't put the thought in her head. Now Sucy had something new to torture her and keep her awake all night.

Sucy paced along the corridor wondering about the information Amanda gave her. Sure, Akko was no supermodel, but she had a lean figure, clear skin, and ridiculously pretty eyes, maybe all the other girls were finally noticing Akko.

She has to do something about it.


	14. Chapter 14

Sucy decided to sit at the back of her ever first Philosophy class. Akko sat next to her, and Sucy knew it in herself that she didn't show how much she appreciated it.

The two girls had, in the past few years since they arrived at Luna Nova, developed something of a routine. It consisted mainly of eating meals at their table, attending their various classes, some of which they had together and others not, and meeting up in the library or outside window shopping and playing arcade or card games before heading home in their respective flat rooms. Even on the weekends, the two of them spend the middle of the day together studying, completing their work, or, on the rare occasion, just simply reading.

And overall, it was quite tolerable—pleasant, even.

Everything changed when Diana Cavendish came into the picture.

Sucy grimaced when the certain blonde and her lapdog sat right near the front. Some of the kids around were naturally thrilled to have the Student Council President and Vice President as their classmates.

Her hand instinctively reached for the spherical object near her neck, accompanied by a fervent thought of boiling the Cavendish girl alive. One way or another, she started feeling better.

Cavendish seemed to notice a burning gaze headed her way; she turned around and met Sucy's eyes. Sucy quickly took refuge by dropping her gaze to the desk, enduring everything.

"I didn't know they were that famous," Akko whispered to her.

Sucy shrugged. Long been enduring the scalding water that filled the tub to the brink of overflowing. She wished for the class to be over even though it hasn't started.

" _Sucy,"_ Loa whimpered, and her voice hoarse and weak. _"Sucy... I feel ill."_

Here came another rambling from her sentient doll. Propping her elbow on the desk, Sucy shocked to know a doll that emanated malevolence would feel sick. The doll had completely defied Sucy's expectations.

" _A higher force beckons... Its aura is clashing with me... please Sucy... hide me away..."_

Sucy's forehead creased at Loa's strange request and felt her pocket. Loa was still there, soft and bulgy. In that spontaneous decision, Sucy's elbow bumped into a girl who was passing by. Her little squeal came to Sucy as a surprise.

"Sorry, about that." A girl with ginger orange hair and round glasses apologized and moved up a higher tier and sat behind Sucy.

Puzzled, Sucy was unprepared to meet a shy person who apologized when she wasn't even at fault. Never in her life had she felt disoriented, like a déjà-vu. Possibly, she had already met this girl and forgot about her.

She could feel the girl's eyes following her every move from behind.

There was a thundering set of footsteps that came inside the room. People turned away from the Brits as Professor Cress entered the classroom. She started the lesson after a brief introduction.

Professor Cruz was blabbering about the philosophy of reason and faith and somehow, Sucy suddenly knew where the class topic was going. God and all that shit. She had clearly broken her ways from the orphanage religious ways and the possibility of discussing it in class for the sake of intellectual debate rouse the anger she was holding back.

It didn't help that Loa kept moaning in her head.

" _Sucy its coming, help me—HELP ME!"_

"SHUT UP FOR ONCE!" Sucy slammed her desk, attracting attention from everyone in the classroom.

"Er... Sucy?" Akko slowly approached. "Are you okay?"

Sucy thought of one thing. She didn't know, however, that on this occasion, her mind had frozen. Sucy wasn't thinking about anything. It seemed sacrilegious to do so when her chest felt so tight and her head was close to exploding.

For a moment, Sucy felt blue eyes glancing her way once and she quickly stole a glance from the corner of her eye and sure enough, Cavendish held her gaze, with no shame to hide the fact that she was curious with her sudden explosion.

"Everything okay over there, Miss?" Professor Cress asked.

"Yes, sorry," Sucy grumbled. Pleased she was able to articulate her thoughts now that Loa left her head ever since she shouted.

Sucy bit her bottom lip nervously before Cavendish nonchalantly looked back to the front. She glanced at the board, reading what the Professor wrote in it and cringed at how right she was about the topic.

_Heaven: Real because it does or real because we want it to be._

Professor Cress cleared her throat, drawing the class' attention back to her. "Faith and reason are both sources of authority upon which beliefs can rest. If I were to tell you the Bible is evidence, you would respond how do I know if what was written in Bible real or fiction? I would respond I don't know but I believe it to be true." Some nodded to her explanation, even Akko. Sucy didn't care. "Ask yourself this class, how do you know your mother is your real mother? You would claim that the proof is your resemblance, but look at me and this young man." She pointed at Cavendish's partner. "We have the same face outline and conduct, yet he's not my son. Some of you might claim that the proof is in your birth certificate, but then how do you know that it is not forged or you weren't swapped at birth? You can see the similar pattern developing. Even in science, nothing is a hundred percent accurate. To overlook that percentage of error or doubt, you must have faith. Religious faith is of two kinds: evidence-sensitive and evidence-insensitive. The former views faith as closely coordinated with demonstrable truths while the latter is more strictly as an act of the will of the religious believer alone. So instead, on this particular day... I want all of you to debate on the subject matter using the two kinds of faith."

Diana raised the only hand among everyone.

"Go ahead, Miss Cavendish." Professor Cruz said. "What's your stance?"

"I believe heaven is real because we desire it." There was much conviction mirrored in her eyes. "I will be citing a passage in the Bible, as I am not well versed with the Torah or Qur'an. In the Gospel of Romans chapter one verses 19 to 20, 'Just as God has put in men's hearts the knowledge that He exists'. The collective mind of humanity believed such a thing exist because we are programmed to desire heaven. If Nirvana, Elysium, Paradise, or any other afterlife didn't exist, where would our soul go?"

Sucy couldn't help but interrupt. "Then we would just disappear like we never even existed."

"Why do you think so, Miss...?" Professor Cruz asked.

"Manbavaran," she said.

"Miss Manbavaran, are you on neither side?" the professor asked. "You don't believe in an afterlife?"

"I think..." she dawdled on but noticed Cavendish was staring again so she decided not to back down. "We desire heaven or even believe in the afterlife because we need some sort of assurance, we fear the unknown so we believe things like that in our heads to give us the courage to face death. It's the only hope and security we get when we die."

Cavendish's lips twitched in amusement as some of the class agreed on Sucy's argument.

Yet, Cavendish seemed unaffected by her loss and continued hers. "As far as I know, many of those who question heaven's existence wanted to challenge those who believed in god, such as myself, they were deeply curious to see if they could convince them otherwise."

"Not unless they had already strayed off their path since the beginning," Sucy said, voice laced with a hidden intention then flashed a smile.

Cavendish received the message, returning her gaze with steely eyes.

The bell rang loudly, signaling the end of the lesson. Sucy felt the weight of the tension roll off her shoulders at last. The students rose from their seats and started stretching, preparing to leave.

Sucy watched as the four-eyed girl leave the class meekly.

Following Sucy's vacant gaze, she could feel Loa rolling her eyes at the sudden nature of the electrical impulses shooting across her brain.

" _Why are you checking her out?"_

Sucy gave the doll a slight shove, reminding her of her earlier comment, hissing in a soft whisper. "Oh, now you're feeling better now?"

As soon as Sucy and Akko got out of the classroom, Cavendish caught her eye and approached with a hand on her hip. She ran a hand through the locks of her hair as though she can't find another gesture to retrench the awkwardness that had risen between them. "May I join you for lunch?"

Sucy looked at her weirdly. She could've sworn the Brit grew another limb. Why would Cavendish ask that of her when their mutual friendship with Akko had not managed to cover the two of them for their lack of joint views. They were different and were not prone to camouflage it; on the contrary, they made it obvious even in times where there was no need to rival.

" _Prepare tonight, Sucy. I'm sure another person you hate will ask to join you for dinner."_

Sucy rolled her eyes. Not just because of Loa, but to everyone involved.

Cavendish's lapdog cleared his throat. "I hope you do remember me, Miss Kagari, Miss Manbavaran."

"Hello  _Andoryu_ ," Akko said. Unknown to Sucy whether the girl was playing dumb or she's really having a hard time pronouncing his name. But the reaction plastered on his face made it worth it.

A stray lock of dark hair fell from his side swept hair. Akko almost reached for him instinctively to help fix his appearance. Unbeknownst to her that she created a spark of loathing from the two other girls. Sucy's heart thumped loudly inside her chest like a fire alarm.

"Color me surprised," Hanbridge said with a grin that could send girls swooning. "I did not take you to initiate the first contact, my fair lady."

His grin fell short when his jugular met a whiplash of Sucy's knife hand strike that she learned when watching Karate Chop videos with Akko.

Hanbridge dropped his jaw and stumbled back in a shocking bewilderment. He tripped over himself and fell. "Holy sh—! What the hell is that?"

"SUCY!" Even Akko cried with eyes widened in obvious fear.

Sucy's eyes had not dimmed back as she still had that frightening death glare. Andrew was panting on the ground, speechless and pale like a ghost. She was reaching out to him, closer and closer she can get a piece of his DNA and kill him for having the gall to flirt with Akko.

"Miss Manbavaran," Cavendish glanced from him to her. "As your Student Council President, I may have to reprimand you and send you to detention but as a first-time offender, I am letting you off with a warning."

Sucy hadn't managed to pluck his hair which was fine. It was a wake up calling after all. "Why thank you."

"GOD," Hanbridge groaned, struggling to get on his feet. "Alright, I'm leaving."

* * *

" _ **His funeral**_  is being pushed for Saturday," Cavendish said as she told Akko details of their Saturday plans to hang out.

Akko hesitated, her spoon stayed in her mouth, still relishing in the aftertaste of the creamy mushroom soup that the cafeteria had served. "I really don't like funerals. I'm not even that close to Frank, why do you always ask me to come with you to visit dead people?"

Sucy snorted, trying so hard not to giggle at Cavendish's failed attempt at reasoning with Akko. The trio sat on their usual table in the cafeteria with everyone sitting in seating position from last time.

"My apologies, I failed to make it certain with you. I'm not asking you to come with me to attend his funeral; I simply want you to know that I'll be there before meeting with you."

"Isn't that bad luck?"

"If it may ease you, I will fend off the bad luck with charms."

"Alright, you know what, Diana. You can tell me you need emotional help like a shoulder to rest your head on. I really don't know why you would be shy with your intentions."

Cavendish's cheeks turned pink again, increasing the frown on Sucy's lips. Somehow, listening to their conversation about their Saturday hangout became too much to bear.

"Why is Frank being buried?" Sucy interrupted. "Isn't cremation a thing right now?"

"Frank's family are old fashioned." She said. "And they had to put him to rest without delay because the Blytonbury Police Service had enough trouble with protecting his remains from the invasive press. There's a word around that they might need assistance from the Mets."

"Mets?" Akko repeated.

"The Metropolitan Police Service, known to the Londoners as the Mets." She said. The perfect Cheshire grin on her lips was similar to one of the cats who had caught the canary.

"Why would they need help from the capital?" Akko squirmed.

"Scotland Yard, the London police headquarters, home to one of the oldest detective forces in the world," Sucy explained before the blonde could, unconsciously sinking her nails deeper into the soft flesh of her palms.

" _She's riling you, Sucy. You must not let her get to you. Make her face your wrath."_

Sucy breathed deeply and slowly, her stomach doing a somersault with the thought of impending danger that surrounded her. "Is your friend's death that much of a mystery that you need the Mets?"

"Give them a break," Cavendish said, taking a meek bite of her hard biscuit that she dipped in her tea. There was not a time in Sucy's life that the Brit never had tea in her food intake and consumption. "Not all chains of mystery are solved within a day."

"You mean they are all incompetent idiots."

"I will be that girl, you know." She said, her jaw tightening. "The one who will say not all of them are hopeless."

"Why?"

"I can't wait to contribute to the work, honestly." Her words still too measured and precise, "The DI came to a conclusion all the deaths that started with Thomas leading up to Frank are all connected somehow; including the untimely criminal aggression of the late Sergeant Kinsley."

"DI?" Akko asked, embarrassed.

"Detective Inspector," Diana placed a hand on Akko's shoulder, gesturing that it was completely normal for a foreigner to know what the abbreviations mean.

"So wait," Akko formed her arms into a timeout. "Wangari's articles are actually true? Do they think the killer is in the school?"

"Apparently," the Brit shrugged, drinking her tea watching Sucy carefully with lidded eyes. "I even came to a speculation the killer is a student."

"It's not me!" Akko raised her hands in surrender.

Sucy rested her face on her palm. "We know that, Akko. Who's the DI, by the way?"

Cavendish's blue eyes glistened, hinting a playful smirk. "Why would you want to know?"

Sucy gritted her teeth, looking down on her meal without really seeing. Coming up with an idea how to protect herself from the increasing investigators in the school. "Why not? You've been parading the sleuthing measures of the police so why not have at it."

"Oh how quaint," Cavendish smiled, and the expression was viciously mocking. "It seems I have chattered too much."

Sucy was getting tired of this conversation, fully knowing there wasn't a lot she could get from Cavendish when the blonde had her walls guarded up like that. Sucy munched on her mushrooms, angrily chewing on the delectable and changed the topic. "Where's Professor Ursula, Akko? I haven't seen her all day."

"Eh, she's overworking herself, I think."

"She has arrived from her journey?" Cavendish asked, perking up.

"Yeah, just this morning," Akko spoke conversantly. "I'll give you some souvenirs. Professor Ursula told me the Philippines have their own version of Dried Plums they inherited from the Chinese and I hear they are also good."

"Oh no, I can't."

"I insist! They are my favorite snack!" Akko placed a hand on the blonde's shoulder and shook her as if Akko was submitting her to dizzy submission when the truth was she had other plans.

Sucy's lips curved upwards in anticipation. She didn't need to wait for Saturday; Akko could grab a hair out of Cavendish right here, right now.

"What are you doing?" Cavendish asked, catching Akko trying to grab her hair. She grabbed Akko's offending hand, eyes blinking.

Akko was flustered from being caught red-handed. Sucy gasped as well. Did the Brit anticipate it, had she known all along about the hair, or was it some sort of muscle tension case?

"Uhh..." Akko mustered up a coherent sentence. "Your hair, it's lovely. It's like cotton candy and I'd love to touch it."

Cavendish wasn't acquainted with how to feel about that. "Is that so? The fact you are also curious about my hair makes my desire to touch your ponytail relatively normal."

"Eh? You do?"

"Diana?"

A random duo rudely gawked at them. Sucy could swear she heard Cavendish murmur something under her breath.

"There you are!" The redhead paced along towards their table while the silky long haired one followed suit. "We missed you."

Cavendish leaned away from them; hoping it would help the newcomers recognize they are unwanted. A shy smirk danced on Sucy's lips at the sight of Cavendish' plan began to fail.

"Why are you not around the Student Council office during lunch time anymore?" The one with the darker hair asked.

"Oh girls, it was never my intention, I only wanted to spend some time with—" Cavendish stared back at Akko and Sucy, figuring whether she would mention just Akko or both. Though, she never had the chance to complete her sentence.

"Hey!" another girl with short purple hair and catlike purple eyes pulled the girls away. "Diana can hang around other people you know. You should be proud she's out and about and not always stressing out, eh."

The third girl had a strong accent by the end of her sentence unlike the many accents of the British people. Like a tendency to raise her tongue mouths when making 'ou' sounds.

"I suppose you're right, Avery."

"See you later, Diana!"

The one called Avery sent a wink on Cavendish's way and Sucy got a glimpsed of it. To the untrained eye, the gesture might be excused as a subtle signal that she accepted Cavendish's expression of gratitude or it could even be passed as flirting but Sucy knew straightaway. Glazing over the sight of the purple haired girl, watching her trail away, in that instant, she knew the girl is Cavendish's spy.

" _Remember, Sucy. Whatever plans you might have conjured, I can help. I am your instrument and you are my player."_

Sucy pocketed her hand before she instantaneously lunged after her.

The Canadian let out a girly scream after being tackled, alerting everyone in the cafeteria, even surprising her companions at the table.

"What the heck's your problem, hoser?"

Faced with an adversity, Sucy was becoming good at lying. With a poker face, she nonchalantly pointed at the huge spider she flicked away on the floor. "You've got a spider in your hair."

Cavendish's fangirls wrapped each other in a hug and screamed at the sight of a dark brown spider with a bulbous abdomen on the floor.

"You're welcome, by the way," Sucy said, keeping her voice in monotone. "I saved you a trip to the Hospital. That little critter is a False Widow Spider, known to bite humans. They are not usually aggressive, but you may never know."

"Oh," the Canadian licked her lips, contemplating what to say. "Thank you."

Sucy had taken vicious satisfaction from the other girl's anger and embarrassment. Giving her a nod in response, she watched her leave with the two scared girls. A smirk worming its way to her mouth, nobody knew she has the Canadian's purple hair strand that she plucked amongst the commotion.


	15. Chapter 15

"What do we owe the pleasure of your visit, Miss Cavendish?"

Diana flashed her best dashing smile. One typically reserved for adults, showcasing her sweet good old nature. "Hello Madam, I came to see the clinical documentation of some students."

"Oh dear," the matron of the academy's infirmary caressed her cheek. "Are there students giving you lots of troubles? You shouldn't do this yourself, Miss Cavendish."

"I actually find it less troubling if I do their forgotten jobs rather than scold them of printing a copy of their clinical records before they apply for a new club to me."

"Oh my, what a tedious task, if you do everything for them, certainly they will abuse your power."

"This is just one time, good madam. I won't do it again."

"Oh good!" the matron immediately sat on her desk to type the student's name in the computer. "Whose record do you need a copy of?"

Diana's smile perked up, "Sucy Manbavaran and Atsuko Kagari."

It took Diana a long while just to get those files because the matron was concerned with her entire wellbeing. If she has enough nutrients, sleep, and fun outside of school work and responsibilities.

The matron had studied her distrustfully when she said she was resting and eating well in between mental and physical exercises. So when she was satisfied that Diana was actually just extremely tired, and not sick, she finally let Diana read the files in peace after handing the Student Council President a dose of vitamins throughout their exchange.

After fleeing the matron's trusting gaze, Diana headed for the exit, pacing along the path towards the Student Council room. Her entire body was on edge despite being in a relatively safe environment.

Diana had no idea where this shiver and fear came from. She had established Frank's death was her fault, but ever since she had lunch with the two misfits once more, she felt she was walking on a sword's pointy edge.

Especially after she saw Sucy's face after she saved Avery from that spider. Before the spider came into view, Diana thought for sure that Sucy was going to hurt her. Sucy Manbavaran was a force to be reckoned with; even her seemingly innocent movements caused Diana's heart to be ripped from her ribcage.

Nothing escaped Diana's power of observation, she was certain Avery had no arachnid hanging around her head. Yet, Sucy went for it. Did the spider escape Diana's sight? It was unlikely that Sucy had a spider on her all along.

Unless it was a specialty the Filipino girl could do until it shed light on Diana's list of possibilities.

Diana couldn't remove the thought of it being a ruse out of her mind. She has to make certain that Avery will be safe in the next few days.

"I can't believe you have to undergo through that intricate lie just to have a peek at Manbavaran's clinical documentation," Andrew said, as she entered the room. The other members were out on errands and he was alone with Avery who helped him separate approved and disapproved papers. "I also can't believe you looked into Miss Kagari's as well."

"One lesson I learned in life," Diana started. "If you act really self-assured and confident you can get away with anything. Also, the system's hacking method changed and it's a hassle to try to decode everything when I can just waltz in confidently to retrieve her health information myself. I asked for Akko's so as not to arouse suspicion from the matron." She began articulating her thoughts. "Sucy Manbavaran is adopted by an English Doctor and therefore is under the Data Protection Act, but I must say the act itself is bloody useless. The code of practice isn't even properly reinforced and I am able to breach it just like that."

"You managed to learn even the classified information?" Andrew regarded her. She possessed no papers or electronics. "Don't tell me you read her papers and commit it to memory just like that."

Diana paid him no mind, waltzing around, relaying what she had read. "In definition, a murderer gets labeled a serial killer after his third victim. Sucy Manbavaran is mistreated in the orphanage, even in her foster home, and she didn't have any father figure in life. For a psychopath killer, the genetic load is enormous. 80% or more and there are no shared environmental factors while normal killers are a combination of bad genes and bad environment. Amongst serial killers, we often observe a combination of psychological, physical, and sexual abuse, but in Sucy's case, the combination isn't there. It's mostly psychological."

"A piece of advice..." he paused, "Never equate trauma with motive. So, she doesn't possess the likelihood of a serial killer like you thought she was?"

"Not all serial killers have that motive and profile," Diana interjected. "And besides, these are all idle speculations. I have a lot of free time if you haven't noticed."

"Oh I have, trust me." Andrew crossed his legs. "We're just entertaining your sudden fascination on psychology. Like that one time when you said that it was a performer who made that strung of murders on the news when we were like six."

"The reason why they still haven't caught the killer is that they never look at other possibilities. I wager my lunch that the killer 10 years ago is a performer."

"Isn't your Chariot a performer?" he asked. "So based on that logic, it means Chariot resurfaced after all those years and started killing again."

Diana crossed her arms. "And you're the one telling me I make assumptions without proof."

"Why?" he queried. "Is there a special instruction for guessing?"

"There's a difference between a guess and a hypothetical guess!"

"Okay chill for a second." Andrew raised his hands in defeat. "So why do you reckon the killer a decade ago was a performer?"

"Actors, Andrew." She laughed. "Performers cannot fool me. They're deceitful, ambitious and ruthless."

"Didn't you used to perform for a year?"

"My point exactly," Diana said, placing a hand on her hip. "You need somebody to understand their language and I speak fluent thespian."

"Not lesbian?" he wiggled his brows.

"Oh shut it."

"Diana Cavendish's a lesbian?" Avery gasped, putting a hand on her chest in mock surprise. "What a good day for girls who fancy you."

"There are girls who fancy me?"

Andrew and Avery both burst out laughing, one of them even chortled. "I reckon Chloe does."

"She does? Oh! She does! How delightful! She's straight with a homosexual tendency."

A blushed formed in her features as she tried to contain her embarrassment. "Avery, I will double your paycheck if you would keep your mouth shut and not entertain him."

"You can't sway me like that, Diana." She waved a finger sideways.

Andrew still hasn't finished laughing. He hadn't had a good one such as this for a long time so Diana let him be.

When he was done, Andrew wiped away his tears and decided they must return to the previous topic. "What else does Miss Manbavaran's record say?"

Diana coughed, clearing her throat. "A whole catalog of antisocial behaviors: she's been flippant, conniving, and uncouth. At the age of seven, her teachers and nuns describe her as lazy, arrogant, and demanding. A bully with using mushrooms and other chemicals, and from there, things just continue downhill. At age 12 she tried to strangle one of her adoptive sisters, and she was fascinated with uncanny types of pet and killing them afterward."

"Ahh..." Andrew said. "Remind me how she managed to enroll at this prestigious academy?"

"It was due to her foster mother's influence," Diana said. "So the reason why we dismiss her antisocial qualities for simply asocial is that she's been taught to behave in a certain acceptable way."

"But you can't just make people stop being antisocial—not unless she went under a brain rewire."

"The paper stated she underwent rehab for five years."

"Oh," Andrew crossed his legs and formed his hands into a steeple. "But was that enough? I have an eerie feeling she was not diagnosed and treated properly. It seems to me as well that Miss Kagari is like her support dog."

Diana chuckled. "Oh yes, nervous cheetahs being given emotional support in the form of dogs. But the question remains, how come her foster mother adopted her when she has those psychopathic tendencies? Avery, how's your sleuthing coming along?"

"I found some dirt on Dr. Ophelia Adams." Avery slammed two photographs on the table.

One photo was of an old woman with long tangled hair, there was a scar on her left eye indicating it was sliced by a knife. The other was still of an old woman, yet her hair was slicked back, no scars on her eyes, her nose was a little turned up, and her face was overall generally improved than the other.

"She is a widow who used her husband's resources to change her appearance and her name. Before who she is now, she was known to be Ramzan and maltreated all the children who were unwanted in the orphanage during her care in the Philippines. She's blind on the left and replaced it with a glass eye for appearance's sake. She used starvation and brutality as punishments to misbehaving children. Sucy Manbavaran is the first foster child ever since her name-change."

"Do you think she is maltreated as well?" Diana asked.

Avery blew a raspberry. "Why don't you go ask her?"

"Ah, still a mystery, I see."

"So you found a psychological backup," Avery shrugged. "But you haven't found any proof that she is a serial killer."

"Baby steps, my dears. We're getting there." Diana said in a sweet song, "How about Miss Kagari?"

"Well, Atsuko Kagari is a happy go lucky girl. She's aspiring to be a Magician like that one loony Chariot you keep talking about. She's carefree; she loves everybody and trusts everybody, and thinks everybody meant good."

"Explains why she was bullied in the first place," Andrew said.

"She actually put up a fight against them, you know, but they were a lot stronger than her and used emotional manipulation so she became this pitiful girl that followed their every whim. On the outside, she looks like a young lady of average upbringing, but inside, she hides a darker side of her personality."

"Don't we all?"

"Shut it, Andrew. Atsuko Kagari isn't averse to hanging out with the bad crowd. And her friends are the worst crowd in all of Blytonbury."

"Alright, I'm guessing we are done with your dialogue. Let me just say," Andrew threw his hands up in the air. "Sucy Manbavaran is crazy! I agree she's part of the worst crowd!"

"Something happened while I'm gone?" Avery glanced at both of them.

Diana turned away with an uninterested look at her face. "You deserved it."

"Very well," Andrew crossed his legs with a sinister smirk on his mouth. "You have fun with Miss Kagari tomorrow."

Avery choked on air. "Diana? You have a date?"

"Why does everyone keep calling it that? I am allowed to have other friends."

"Diana!" Avery shook her head. "If you really like this girl than what you let on, you should reel them in with your great personality. You didn't have to have me ask around about your crush for you!"

"With looks like that?" Andrew pointed a hand from her head to toe, chuckling. "All she needs is to give them a smile and they will swoon."

"No," Avery said. "Diana should be herself... only fun and less tightly-wound."

* * *

 _ **Akko was**_  beautiful—so incredibly beautiful.

The observation was so powerful and immediate that Sucy can still remember the feeling of surprise when she felt when it hit her. And it seemed long ago, yet the memories are vivid and clear. Sucy was walking on a cobbled bridge, looking for the bus stop towards Luna Nova School.

A few hundred feet away, descending some steps in her usual blind and clumsy way, someone jostled and knocked her over. Sucy turned her head to make sure she didn't miss her footing and fall on her face like the idiot who bumped her.

And there she was—Akko. The contents of her bag spread across the floor of the bridge.  
Of course, Akko must have been there before Sucy chose to look upon her; no doubt for the first 15 years beforehand she had been living her life, despite the fact that Sucy had had no idea of her existence. But in that moment, Akko was born in Sucy's eyes.

Their meeting was destiny interweaving the threads together.

Sucy rolled her eyes at the girl who can't seem to shut up. She went on and on about the famous Magician Shiny Chariot and all of her life's dreams to become exactly like her. Sucy tried to get rid of her, but all those attempts were in vain.

They arrived at school together and since then had become inseparable. Sucy even considered her world was ending when she comprehended that the Japanese girl lived in the same flat building as her. And everyone around them would call them Akko and Sucy or Sucy and Akko. One name is supposed to come with the other.

Her train of memories departed as soon as she and Akko arrived at their flat building.

"Sucy," Akko said. "I'm sorry I failed you earlier. I don't know why maybe I lost my touch."

Sucy refused to have her flashbacks be ruined with the thought of Diana Cavendish so she gave Akko the sincerest forgiving look. "Hey, it's okay. Maybe her senses heightened. She's a dubious little cat after all."

"I'll try again this Saturday, okay?"

"Don't try. Do it."

Akko briskly nodded as they approached her flat. "Well, here it is." She said, beaming at her. "I had a lot of fun living with you for a few days. We should have another sleepover next time."

"As long as you don't spill some blood on my futon," Sucy acted indifferently but deep inside she couldn't wait.

"Hey! That was once!" Akko screamed, blushing at having her period last night. "I told you I will wash your sheets tonight."

"No, let me do it. You might bleach my colored ones."

"Hey! I can at least do decent laundry!"

"No need, you should practice more on your sleight of the hand tricks. Also, I'll get your stuff and deliver it to you tonight."

"Eh, you don't have to. We're having another sleepover next time, aren't we?"

"I guess."

"Then I'll just leave it there!" Akko bumped her hips at Sucy who yelped at Akko's suddenness.

"Okay, bye."

Despite the constant troubles Akko endlessly gave her, still, life continued on. Regardless of whether one has fallen in love at first sight or fallen in love gradually over time. It's pretty cruel like that. With another affectionate nudge from Akko, Sucy somehow forced her feet to move onwards, past the object of her devotion, and towards a place she less desired—her flat room.

Sucy had long known that love-stricken people never forget the moment they fell in love with someone. No matter if they never see that person again, or how many times they have loved others. The mere realization that it's possible, the frightening strength and unexpected occurrence of the surge of emotion are enough to give such a jolt to their body and their mind that they never forget. Not really.

She was relieved Akko wasn't residing with her any longer so she can continue her killings. The only downside to it was losing Akko's heat that embraced her in their shared space.

Sucy found herself a quiet corner to stand by, wallowing in self-pity. When there was no sign of Akko around, Sucy turned in to the wall and pressed her forehead against it, feeling the loose particles of dust dig hard against her skin, maybe breaking the surface. The pain at her leaving had terrified Sucy.

She was trembling with fear because she was so sure that she was truly losing her mind. That had to be it. This girl had driven her crazy. No sane person could feel this way. Sucy had spoken to Akko for hours and hours and merely lived with her for a couple of days and when Akko had walked away to return to her flat, Sucy had wanted to die.

She had long gone mad.

" _Sucy."_

She gritted her teeth. Even with the countless of times, Sucy reminded Loa not to talk to her in public in case of another distraction, the doll persisted. Loa had to wait until they are within the safe confinement of their flat. It didn't take much resolve to continue ignoring the doll as she grabbed and keys once she has gotten close to her room.

" _I don't want to cause you alarm, but... you're being followed."_

Sucy froze. The key was merely an inch away from the keyhole. "What?"

"Excuse me, Sucy. May I have a word with you?" Professor Ursula stepped behind her, her face grim and stern.

Sucy fidgeted, and then the professor placed a hand on her shoulder, squeezing a little. "Oh sure, what is it, Professor? Does Akko need her stuff back immediately?"

" _Sucy... help..."_

Not now, Sucy grimaced. It was becoming infuriating that Loa was pulling a boy who cried wolf again.

"It must have been hard," Professor Ursula said, removing her glasses to reveal her fiery red eyes. "Doing what you do in your own room, hiding your demons from Akko."

"Huh?"

"I have an assumption of your certain proclivities. It involves witchcraft and voodoo."

Unaware if Professor Ursula had seen through the facade, or was completely joking, Sucy stared at her blankly. "Isn't that a little chauvinistic coming from you?" she asked, reaching for Loa inside her pocket. A breeze of terror rushing down over her upon comprehending the doll wasn't where she should have been.

"Oh Sucy," Professor Ursula stretched her arm; she was already holding the voodoo doll that she might have snatched from her. "Do you really think you can fool me, a renowned deception specialist?"

"Loa?" Sucy saw that her doll was wrapped with a holy rosary. Her hairs on her skin stood up, and her eyes widening. It was too late for her to grasp Loa had been trying to warn her of a possible confrontation.

Professor Ursula fished for a necklace that she hid inside the collar of her shirt and revealed a triangular golden pendant with an enchanted stone in the middle.

" _Agimat?"_ Sucy whispered. Shocked at how the French woman obtained a Filipino amulet to ward off evil and magic. Her breath caught in surprise as Professor Ursula took a step into her personal space, "H-how?"

The Professor fixed her glasses up to the bridge of her nose. "My objective was to merely have a chat with you without you trying to use your magic on me. Why do you reckon I left my previous profession?"

"So the real reason why you went to my birth country, to begin with, was to research about me." Sucy contemplated with pulling the amulet from the woman's neck but wouldn't risk it since she's powerless without the doll anyway. "Did you somehow involve yourself with black magic in the past?"

"Yes, I encountered it. This doll is the darkest of arts, Sucy. I'm glad I was able to find out about it before you spiral yourself deeper into this mess. How did you manage to get your hands on it?"

Sucy swallowed, expecting to have more resolve for a fight, but she dropped her chin, almost nodding. She chewed her lip and formed the words in her mouth. "She's an heirloom."

"An heirloom?" Professor Ursula asked. "She had a child?"

"You know the woman who gave birth to me?"

Professor Ursula's eyes glistened over a distant past. "Then so, the reason why your mother left you—"

A flash of anger appeared with Sucy's darkly beating heart. "Having me wasn't among her plans at all and left me to rot at the orphanage. When she died, I'm the rightful master of that doll!"

Professor Ursula took in a deep breath as if stopping herself from opening her mouth and afraid to speak her mind. "So I'm too late. You've succumbed to the curse long before. Regarding your mother, I'm pretty sure she has her reasons, perhaps to stray you off the path of evil."

"Yeah sure whatever, she denied me my heritage. I personally don't believe that mothers love their children so much."

"I can't agree to that," Professor Ursula said, with how orphans go, some of them searched for their mother while some despised them growing up. The French woman herself was one of those who searched for her mother, seeking for answers. "But I do know a curse shall befall on me when I try to divide the master and her doll. The amulet of protection around my neck could only do so much." She removed the holy rosary around Loa and tossed the doll back to Sucy.

Sucy caught her beloved friend. Never before in her life had she seen Loa so weak and fragile. "Loa, you're easily defeated by holy relics?"

" _My powers can be contained for a short while. She is right. She can try to hinder and contain my power, but if something happens to me or to you, she will be cursed! Upon her old age, she will not die, but her body will continue decaying."_

"I fully know the consequences." Professor Ursula removed her glasses with a dramatic flair. "And I know you can kill me anytime now that I returned the doll to you."

"I won't kill you," she deadpanned.

" _Why not?"_  Loa asked.  _"You saw what she did. You know what she can do. Obliterate her!"_

"Akko might forgive me for what I've done so far but if I as much touch the hairs on her idol's head, she will never forgive me," Sucy said as her eyes stung from stopping the tears. It pained her to realize that Akko could never love her more than she loved Shiny Chariot, but in this case, Sucy would strive solely for romantic love. "And you're right. She is a threat. But I doubt she will inform the authorities. She will have to bear the consequence of sending Akko to jail for complicity in murder."

Professor Ursula seemed unfazed by the revelation, as she knew from the beginning. "So she did help you retrieve a strand of hair."

"Willingly and actively, I might add," Sucy said.

"It would be hard to pass that as ignorance even if it's the truth." Professor Ursula bit her lower lip. "It would be ideal to reveal you're a serial killer when you turn 18 and Akko's still 17."

"You reckoned Akko won't get indicted because she's a minor?" Sucy said. In her bones, she was freaking scared. "With a supernatural weapon such as this, Akko and I would be tried in an adult court. We could avoid the ordeal of a trial by pleading guilty to all the murders. We could be sentenced to life terms. My crimes might be bigger than hers, so she must be safe, but you do know her future will be ruined."

"How dare you try to ruin her future?"

All Akko ever wanted was to become like Shiny Chariot—a world-renowned Magician. But fame is a fickle thing. A criminal could never reach the ranks of a famous performer who can make people smile.

"I'm not ruining her future! I'm helping her achieve her dreams! And those who tried to bring her down constantly deserved to be dead!"

Professor Ursula gritted her teeth. Her face contorted into pain at witnessing a road Sucy herself was traveling.

"But what are the laws against the supernatural, Professor?" Sucy asked. "I'm only taking a guess, but... supernatural weapons like this, a murderer and her accomplice will surely be lynched. Will you prosecute us, Professor? Will you be like Diana Cavendish?"

A visible sweat trailed to Professor Ursula's cheek. "You're right. However much it pains me to keep quiet and let you walk among the innocents, I don't want harm to come to Akko. I promised her parents that I will take care of her."

" _It's a death threat to know you and your enemies have the same weakness, Sucy."_

"She knows more than she lets on." Sucy mumbled. "I'm sure you know what she knows, you just don't want to tell me."

" _Are you suspicious of me, Sucy?"_

"I'm already suspicious of everyone, you're no exception."

"I see that it's true only the master can communicate with the doll." Professor Ursula said. "I did my best to learn everything about witchcraft in the Philippines but not all stuck with me. I will help you, Sucy. Help you when you kids need to bail like last time. I will have to train Akko, harder than ever before. Being a deception specialist has helped me survive in ways you don't know."

"Then help me know," Sucy said.

"But I will never help you harm another," the French woman continued, ignoring her. "And not until I find a legit proof to the court that Akko's being forced against her will to help you."

Sucy smiled. The fact that Professor Ursula wasn't aware that Akko really didn't have a clue with the hair strands was her advantage. "It's nice of you to tell me the truth. I really hate backstabbers. But to think that you would do everything for Akko that it would put you at risk of the law of joint enterprise."

Professor Ursula frowned and furrowed her brows, a dark contrast to her dyed hair. "I made a promise, Manbavaran, and I keep them."

Sucy caught a whiff of a sweet aroma that took her years ago as a young child. "What's that smell?"

"Oh, this?" Professor Ursula fished for a fruit she kept hidden in her pocket. "The witch doctors told me the smell of sugar apple throws you off."

"I'm more fascinated with how did you manage to believe those witch doctors."

"So I was scammed?" she waved the fruit across Sucy's face.

"Be reasonable, you're annoying the heck out of me. It's not because I'm a witch."

"What about salt and garlic?"

Never in all her life had she been misjudged so much that it hurt. "Do you take me for a spice-less person? You're stereotyping me!"

"My apologies, Sucy... with the rise of your supernatural powers, I'm not even sure of what's real and a myth anymore." Professor Ursula said. "I'll be back to my flat room. I shall see you at dinner. We're having Adobo... with mushrooms."

At that, Sucy's face lit up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoa, look at how so many wrong things that could happen! Even I get anxious for all of their safety. Also please if you find any misspelling or grammar errors, please don't hesitate to tell me.


	16. Chapter 16

They buried him today.

Diana stood in the crowd, all of them dressed in blacks. She clenched her hands nervously as women in big, veiled hats and men with slicked back hairs and fitted tuxedos exchanging soft, sad words about what a shame it was. How Frank had been so brilliant, how he could have had such a full life ahead of him.

There was a coffin in the middle, and the mortician did a great job in making Frank look peaceful even if he had a violent end.

Frank's grieving parents had heavy ringed eyes, their faces lined in stress. It was cold, not only because of the weather but being in a burial where the guilt was strong proved to be suffocating.

"This is aggravating," Andrew confessed to her.

"Yes, this is one of those times where I wish I was everywhere but here."

Diana and Andrew stood far out from the crowd where they watch Hannah and Barbara console Frank's dear parents at the front. Frank's mom was red and swollen like a pregnant woman and his dad brooding like a lost soldier in the midst of war.

They both couldn't find it in their hearts to face them once more today when they both share the immense guilt of his demise.

Frank's coffin had been lowered down to the earth. Yet, as the hours went by and the hollowed earth was full again, there are people who loved him who refused to move on and lingered. Except for the Minister of Defense and his son, Louis Blackwell, Diana was certain they stayed for a hidden agenda; probably to spread false information to strike fear and submission to their cause in their particular beliefs in the name of politics.

Andrew's father, however, the Minister of State Paul Hanbridge was eager to leave. "It does not puzzle me that you would want to stay behind. He's your best mate after all, but I have to go."

"Worry not, father. I have my own car."

"See you, son."

They watched him walk away and when Andrew was sure of his distance, he asked her while fixing his cufflinks. A habit he frequently does when he was about to put up with a facade. "So, what time will you meet with Miss Kagari today?"

Diana doubted what sort of act of brash decision Andrew had in mind for him to be nervous about and refuse to tell her. "In about an hour, I will meet her and Carter will drive us to a café shop she requested."

"What café shop is it?"

Diana raised her neatly arched eyebrow at the possibility that Andrew might trail after them. "Something called Last Wednesday Society, I am certain my chauffeur knows the place."

Andrew's eyebrows knitted together in a frown.

"What? What's with that look?"

"I know the place. That was where Frank had a blind date weeks ago."

"Frank had a blind date?"

"Yeah, I set him up to help him get over you but during that date, something happened—he won't tell me—but I guess that saddened him so he took your aunt's advice to pursue you instead."

"Do you know the girl he had a date with?"

"Truthfully, I forgot her name. All I know is that she's the kind of girl that you wouldn't notice until you really look at her."

Nodding, Diana mumbled. "I have an idea of her."

Andrew's brows knitted together. "Diana, are you stereotyping?"

"I'm not. I said I have an idea. I did not utter a single disrespectful description."

"What about her then? Why the sudden interest with Frank's blind date?" his expression changed from puzzlement to apprehension. "You don't suppose—"

"And you call me delusional," Diana glared with a sneer evident on her lips. "My curiosity does not always correlate with the case."

Andrew rolled his eyes and stared far into the distance. "Oh, your manic pixie dream girl is here."

Diana made an exasperated sigh. "Please tell me you are bluffing."

"Whatever do you mean?" Andrew fluttered his lashes at her, imitating the irritable way a certain French girl when she tried to be innocently sweet despite the jaded personality within.

Akko was clad in an orange jacket, blue turtleneck sweater, and some shorts despite the cold December air. She spotted them and started her way, shuffling towards Diana when she tripped over a conveniently placed rock and fell down on her face flat on the ground.

Andrew sighed. "She's a lost cause."

Before anyone else could notice her epic fail, she sprung up fast like crocuses on spring.

"Good morning," she said, double checking the time on her phone. She moved fluidly to Diana's side, keeping a certain distance between them. Her red eyes flicked against the sun. The electric current that was radiating from somewhere in her body never slackened.

"Morning, Akko," Diana sucked in the morning air.

"Shall we go?" she asked and Diana nodded.

Diana noticed Andrew flick something towards Akko's direction. It was such a tiny object that the Japanese girl couldn't feel. Diana rolled her eyes, yet spoke nothing of it. Andrew has his own decisions and if he wanted to spy on them, Diana has nothing to hide.

Outside, they strolled along a pathway in the park leading towards the road. A sleek black open-top Ferrari rolled in. The cushion was covered with glossy red leather, and it smelled brand new.

"Heading towards your next destination, Miss Cavendish?" the Chauffeur got down and opened the car door for them.

"Indeed, thank you. Please put the hood down this time, Carter." Diana said, motioning for Akko to get inside first and then climbed in beside her.

The chauffeur got the black roof back on and shifted the gear before driving out of the cemetery.

"Are you okay?" Akko asked.

"Grieving is hard work, harder than studying for exams," Diana said in a dull droning voice.

"I'm glad I'm bringing you away from there then."

There was something about Akko's optimism that drew Diana in. Perhaps it was the desire to bring back the childlike innocence she lost and hanging around the girl, she could do well with a few stolen personality traits.

Diana removed her long coat, revealing a black skirt and a white top underneath. She placed her coat behind the seat. All the while, she noticed Akko eyeing the garment with keen interest. Diana grabbed a denim jacket to put on. Her attention was at the rear-view mirror and spotted that indeed Andrew's car was tailing after them before heading towards a different direction.

She crossed her arms. Pondering whether she should reprimand a man older than her for a few months for doing something so rash and irresponsible.

Diana could feel the cushion seat shifting; Akko was reaching for something behind them. "Do you want to borrow my coat, Akko?"

Akko froze, like a mouse caught by a cat. "Ah! Not really, it's just so expensive looking! By the way," she fidgeted, eyes taking in Diana's overall appearance. "You said you would be doing charms to fend off the bad luck?"

"My apologies, Akko, but I honestly do not believe in old wives' tales."

"Eh!"

Diana placed a hand on her shoulder, and told her with the most assured voice she can manage. "We will be fine. It's just lunch."

They hadn't spoken to each other again after that. Diana had grown especially quiet throughout the ride, and Akko was too shy to speak. She can feel Akko's attention boring into her head. It was a bit unsettling, to see someone who's willing to jump at her given the presented opportunity.

After they arrived at their lunch place, Diana glanced up apprehensively from her window side and saw the Last Wednesday Society. Reflected in the black glass, Akko's jaw was set tight. Her red eyes stared straight not through the windshield but to the back of her head.

"Is something the matter, Akko?"

"Eh? Oh! Uh... no," she said. "Let's head inside!"

Diana followed Akko inside and looked over at the desserts and cakes behind the glass counter. Akko was the type of girl who eats sweets for lunch. After ordering their meal and drinks, they settled on a table near the window.

"You come here often?" Diana asked her just to break the heavy silence, though she didn't seem to be bothered by it.

"Sometimes," she said.

"It's an unusual place." Diana got herself some crepes and tea for she wasn't one for sweets, but clearly, her companion has a sweet tooth.

She watched Akko slowly sipped her strawberry milkshake. "Will you have some cake?"

"Cake?"

Akko smiled widely as she offered her a taste of her chocolate cake. Diana's senses were overloaded with how sweet it was, so she just kind of stared at it. Akko laughed a little, flicked her finger over the cake and ate it, grinning.

"Give it a try! It's a Belgian chocolate cake! Everyone loves chocolate."

Diana blinked. Here she was being treated to a simple dessert where Diana was used to eating gourmet food whenever she would dine at her estate. As Akko patiently waited, Diana, sliced herself some. She was not at all supposed to find the surface of it soft, but when she ate it, she found herself a religious woman because this is the most miraculous thing she had ever tasted. Her toes curled with its cocoa aftertaste, and then Akko laughed a lot.

"W-what's with this ordinary chocolate?" Diana flushed.

"I know right! It's just so addictive!"

"Despite its low-priced run of the mill chocolate, its enkephalin, which is responsible for tuning chocolate into a legitimately impossible to resist indulgence, has surmounted than what is supposed to be in an average chocolate," Diana explained, all the while sensing that the shop's proprietor was observing them strangely. "I'm now starting to think you have magnesium deficiency for you to be a chocoholic."

Akko's smile turned upside down, her teeth gritting. "Aww, there you go again! Stop deducing about my actions like the little slut you are!"

Diana's jaw dropped, lost at words for a few seconds. "I think you meant sleuth."

"Oh? What does slut mean?"

Diana chuckled. "Nevermind about it; nonetheless, forgive me. But as Andrew would say, 'you could sooner divert a river from its course than deny my nature'."

"Hey!" Her eyes shone. "I didn't know you love memes."

"Oh please," Diana said, holding her teacup. "It's a bane of my existence. Andrew used that line so many times but I have to admit it is a raw dialogue."

"About a cat, yes!" Akko gushed. "You actually remind me of my old cat back at home."

"Is it because of my catlike behavior or the lion mane of a hair?"

"I meant huggable!" Akko said, and then she took up the fork because she's trying to have manners now—or at least have manners around Diana—but it didn't stop her from carving out great big chunks of the cake with the fork.

Diana ate along with her. She was glad that the bitterness of her tea and the sweetness of her crepe nullified and balanced each other out. And soon, before they know it, Akko's cake was gone. She leaned back in the chair, contented and happier, so much happier, than Diana had ever seen her.

"Akko, you are an angel incarnate." Diana watched her from beneath her long lashes with a little smile on her face, and suddenly Akko cannot look at her, all bashful.

"Oh really, could someone be an angel of I am a troublemaker?"

"Not all is perfect."

"Did I eat too fast? Do you think I'm greedy?"

With a sigh, Diana decided to confront about the issue bothering her since the car ride. "Tell me honestly, Akko. I won't get mad. Why do I find you so often staring and reaching for my hair?"

Akko gulped, slowly inching away as if the little distance mattered. "You know why."

"Because my hair is cotton and you want to touch it?" Diana asked, but somehow not convinced it was the real cause of her desperation. But then again, Atsuko Kagari was not English. Perhaps it is a cultural discrepancy between them.

"Yeah, can I?"

"It is a bit weird to ask someone of that."

"Aren't we friends, Diana?"

"Why, of course, we are. Do you doubt us, Akko?"

Akko pouted, a crease on her forehead indicated she was contemplating. "Then, can I ask a piece of your hair? I swear I won't mess with your hair anymore if you would."

"I am not your average girl, so I possess no basis. Albeit I know your request is not normal."

* * *

_**Sucy tapped**_  her fingers on the counter, humming to some song that had been stuck in her head since few days. It was an annoyingly cold Saturday noon and she was all alone again to tend the shop. Her co-workers were all college students and since Sucy was in her senior year of high school, the manager assigned her to work on Saturdays.

She was so bored out of her mind; she preferred stalking Cavendish and Akko to make sure the Brit won't get her dirty hands all over her beloved. She had half a mind to just close the shop and go home or do the stalking now.

Her mind drifted back to last night. Professor Ursula acted ordinary, like she didn't confront her hours ago and all that. She even perfected her adobo recipe. It tasted exactly like the ones being served at the orphanage. One of the few beloved memories Sucy had of the awful place. She wasn't sure how to feel of it honestly. First, she wanted to relish the flavor exploding inside her mouth on the first bite. The second bite made her want to stab Professor Ursula for making her recall all the awful memories that came with it, and lastly, she wanted to cry upon the third.

She comprehended she had to be used to eating meals surrounded by people who wanted nothing but to put her behind bars. After a delicious Filipino dinner prepared by Chariot herself, Sucy went back to her flat room prepared for the ritual. She went over their conversation last night.

" _How do you plan on dealing with your beloved and killing the spy?"_

"I read this one spell from the tome called empathic mind link and as for Cavendish's spy, I have a better idea. Can you make her walk?"

" _Of course, so you want me to make her walk to her death?"_

"No, I want you to make her meet me somewhere solitary. I have a proposition for her."

" _Your wish is my command."_

Now she would have to wait for tonight.

Sucy's head began to be filled with abducting Cavendish and torturing her again. She was startled back to reality when the front door opened. The first thing that caught her attention was his dark hair.

" _What the hell is he doing here?"_ Loa stole the words right from her mouth.

Cavendish' lapdog walked up to the counter looking down at his phone. Once he reached the counter, he locked the phone screen and looked up. Green eyes met hers and he blinked rapidly a few times.

"Miss Manbavaran?" he said when she made no attempt at saying anything.

"As if it's surprising to see me considering you and Cavendish went snooping about me here," Sucy said crossly.

"True, but catching you work on your shift took me off guard."

He looked around at the flowers and bouquets arranged neatly on the racks behind her and she took the time to study his features. The only thing that didn't go along with his attire was the mischievous glint in his eyes and the nervous cold sweat trailing from her forehead.

"How may I help you?"

"I need a bouquet." he said, "For a girl."

"Thanks, you confirmed my suspicions that you're heterosexual. The occasion?" she asked.

He blinked, unguarded with the sassy line. "It's for an apology."

Sucy looked at the bouquets ready to be sold. "Does she have any favorites?"

He frowned. "Nothing particular, she just generally likes all kinds of flowers."

"Any suggestions?" she asked, "Or do you just want to randomly pick a bouquet from our shelf?"

"No.," he said immediately, "I want it special. It's just I don't know much about flowers and all. So..." He stood silently for some time, looking thoughtful. "You would know what kind of flowers women like right?"

"I don't speak for the majority of my kind," Sucy said.

"Okay how about this. Just make it the way Miss Kagari likes it."

Sucy's nostrils flared. "Is it for Akko?"

"No?"

Sucy regarded him for a minute. Hanbridge looked helpless and naked without a blonde person standing next to him. She nodded, moving around the shop, collecting Akko's personal favourites—all red flowers—and arranging them in a radial pattern.

He stood patiently by the counter as Sucy began her tedious work of flower arrangement. She worked for around twenty minutes, fixing the flowers and adding some finishing touches with a golden ribbon and presented the bouquet to him.

"It's good. And could you do me a favor? My handwriting isn't really good, so can you write a note along with it?"

She nodded and pulled out a small slip of her signature paper form the drawer. "What should I write?"

"I'm sorry Diana, love Andrew," he said.

Sucy raised her visible brow at him, attempting to figure why on earth he would buy a bouquet for Cavendish as an apology.

"I messed up, okay? It would be nice if you wouldn't tell everyone at school about the flowers."

Sucy hummed in response, shrugging. As much as she was tempted to put some poison in the flower so Cavendish would die upon inhaling it, she stopped herself from being unwise. She wrote the words down in neat cursive letters with the name at the bottom end of the note and tied it to the ribbon. She handed the bouquet to him.

"Perfect," he said, smiling. And she noticed that he had a lopsided smile, the left corner of his lips pulled up higher than the right.

He paid and left with a final thanks and she went back to her boring life.

"What was that about?" Sucy asked out loud. No one could hear her except for Loa.

* * *

_**Andrew went**_  back to where he parked his car far away from the flower shop but enough where he can watch if anyone gets in. He can't help his uneasiness as he went in to buy a bouquet with a dual purpose. He knew once Diana would learn about his solo mission, she would slap him for being too reckless, but he can't just stand by and wait.

He found himself unable to idle by as Diana extract information from Miss Kagari while he could do much more to help her. So as he distracted Miss Manbavaran with making that bouquet, left a miniature camera with a microphone on one of the premade bouquets on the shelf and he flicked a button-sized transmitter on Miss Kagari's hood and so he can easily spy on both. Andrew could just imagine all the laws he broke by doing so, and if evidence were presented, would be inadmissible to the court. At least, Diana's speculations would have hold ground.

Andrew turned on the GPS, helping him track where Miss Kagari was. The Japanese girl was at the shop where Diana mentioned they would be. After a few hours, Miss Kagari would separate ways with Diana and head towards Miss Manbavaran.

There, Andrew would be able to hear their conversation about Diana.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

"You have quite a nice name for your cover," she said upon her unexpected entrance. "Although Crescentia Cruz alludes to your old name and genius won't be necessary for people to connect the dots."

It has only been an hour since she parted ways with Akko and she headed straight towards the Italian woman's office at around four in the afternoon.

Diana uncrossed her arms and rested one on her hip. "Is the lilac dye supposed to be a disguise, Detective Inspector Croix?"

She was neither at all shocked when she entered the secret room hidden at the New Moon Tower, nor at the sight of the Detective Inspector inhaling a cup ramen like cocaine. As an undercover professor, she slicked her hair back but as herself, her hair was of an unruly layered hair, and her face donned a huge glasses.

"Oh hello, Lady Diana Cavendish," she said, setting down her ramen. "Have people informed you have an uncanny way of inviting yourself in places you weren't supposed to be?"

"That was a lovely lesson yesterday during Philosophy class." Diana helped herself on a chair in front of the older woman's desk. "I wonder if you had any ulterior motives with the debate."

Detective Inspector Croix rolled her eyes. "What brings you to be here in the flesh?"

"Do I need to spell it out for you Detective Inspector Croix?" Diana asked, playing with the unfinished Rubik's cube she grabbed from the desk.

"What do you think of my secret base?" she spread her hands like a soaring eagle around.

Diana slammed the puzzle toy back to her desk, all sides were filled with its supposed color. "You are lucky enough to have fallen to the Headmistress' grace for providing you such hospitality. Nobody else except for her and me knows about your secret base."

"Not every one of the school board knows of this room or the fact that I'm using this." Detective Inspector Croix grinned before scowling. "Are you here to tell me how to do more of my job, Diana?"

"Oh trust me, after Frank's death I found myself backing out, if not for Andrew giving me the pep talk of the century."

The Italian woman snorted. "What do you have for me except for things I already know?"

Diana drummed her fingers on the table. "First, I called the morgue to send me a photocopy of the results of the first deaths..." she saw the lilac-haired woman widen her eyes with a question. "No, I never said I was acquainted with you to get through. Dr. Parker is a family friend. I learned that Thomas Kinsley's chums took a high degree of psychedelic drugs at the time of their death. They mixed mescaline, LSD, angel dust, and marijuana. So when these drugs set in, they were completely out of their minds."

"All the more to agree that they killed themselves," she said.

"Yes. But why would they kill themselves separately? If it was a mass suicide like the other homicide detectives thought, then why not die at the same time and at the same place? It's too much coincidence if it all were accidents. To just suddenly kill themselves like that in a separate place and a separate hour,"

Detective Inspector Croix formed her hands on a steeple. "Here we go again with your half-baked theory. I fail to see your point in Thomas Kinsley's friends being in a classic case of Alice in Wonderland for you to assume they were a homicide case instead of suicide. Nevertheless, I'm intrigued. Very interesting, but not proof she's involved in the deaths. Diana, you're insinuating that since the victims were using psychedelic drugs, the killer used that to their advantage and simply committed the murder. And it so happened, that the killer is a girl named Sucy Manbavaran."

Diana ticked her tongue in annoyance. She had been sharing her deductive reasoning with the Detective Inspector for quite some time now but still, the woman cannot be bothered to help her, only to disprove her. "But enough to raise reasonable doubt. I'll prove Miss Manbavaran is up to something."

"When you put it that way, it seems too farfetched." She said, reconsidering it all. "And you think psychedelic drugs clouded their sense into not knowing they were being murdered?"

"Yes."

"There are too many flaws in that deduction, Diana."

"I reckon then what occurred is quite stunning in that it escalated. Albeit, there are no leads for our investigators to follow for Thomas Kinsley murder and the fact that Scotland Yard dispatches a detective to investigate. You, yourself is here, posing as the new teacher of Luna Nova. You are quite as convinced as me that the killer is at loose at our school."

"Oh and that's the truth. The murders first happened at Luna Nova, a school with a strict security and every death that came next all are students within. Nevertheless, I do not agree with your theory of the killer being—"

"I'm telling you that the fact that the only lead had died in a manner could mean that the serial killer is a sophisticated one. Believing themselves to be above the law and erasing the leads. I encourage you to profoundly reconsider my theory and keep an eye on Sucy Manbavaran."

The Detective Inspector looked at her like she was delusional,

"I know it's a half-baked probability, but that's why I came to you. You could give me access to your files."

"We're not that close, Diana. You and I have always harbored animosity for our differences."

Diana inhaled sharply. Disappointed for she assumed that when she would share her insights, the Italian woman would let her guard down with her and trust her. "Whatever. What's your progress on Frank's death? Have you any list of the suspect pool?"

"I'm not sharing my information. I think you take unnecessary risks, Diana. You ought to keep your head down. If you like the way it's attached to your shoulders."

"No matter then, can you tell me at least how you think did they do it?"

The woman laughed. "Oh Diana, the question isn't how. The question is when. You still have to improve your sleuthing skills before speaking to me. That is if there is a next time."

"I did question when. I freaking visited the flower shop before."

Croix' ears perked up. "What flower shop?"

"Oh, now I got your attention."

"It depends whether your information is useful."

* * *

_**Sucy's mood**_  brightened almost immediately when she saw the head of the girl with the short ponytail peeping through the door.

"Sucy!" Akko waved her hand cheerfully with a gorgeous smile. "How's manning the counter?"

"Not many customers around," Sucy answered as she got up from her seat and turned the open sign at the door to close.

Just one smile from her could get Sucy through an entire month until she would receive another. Her heart beat too fast. Just being in close proximity with Akko in close quarters, Sucy wanted to lean over and kiss her, to touch the smooth peachy skin with her lips.

The impulse to do so was so strong that Sucy had to dig her nails into her thighs to resist it. "How's the little mission I gave you?"

"Ehe," Akko chuckled nervously. "About that—"

"You haven't gotten a strand of her hair?"

"Yeah, I tried everything! I even tried pulling one from her head directly!" she brought her hands together and bowed apologetically like she was praying. "She keeps catching me. Sorry, I just didn't want to give you the wrong hair again."

"Why is it so damn hard to take a strand of her hair?" Sucy fumed.

"I'm just..." Akko began. "I just find it weird you know. How can I be motivated to help you when I don't even get why you're doing it?"

Adrenaline still coursed through her. Sucy had to lean against the counter, her fingers knotted together to keep from twitching. Maybe it was time to use the Canadian girl to yank a hair out of Cavendish's head.

"Why are you so obsessed with Diana's hair?" Akko barked.

How Sucy deeply wished that she could just explain everything that had gone on between her and Akko, the history they had, why it's necessary to do those things without Akko even knowing it.

However, that wasn't the case. It's never possible for things to work out like that. All Sucy had to do is to pull her in, don't let go, make sure she won't leave.

"Don't ask questions, Akko."

"If you want a piece of her then why do you need to keep it a secret from me? Why not do it for yourself?"

Sucy's nostrils flared. "Let it go, Akko."

"Why not just ask it from her? If you're so shy I'll ask her for you." She proceeded to grab her phone to dial her number.

"Akko no," Sucy's heartbeat jumped up to her throat, petrified and it took her much willpower to grab her friend by the wrist of the hand that held her device.

Akko rolled her eyes. "Don't be stubborn, Sucy!"

"NO AKKO! YOU DONT UNDERSTAND!"

"Then tell me! Do you have a crush on her? Is that it?"

Sucy gagged, "Disgusting."

"Then why?" she yelled back. "Don't worry, I won't tell her."

Sucy inhaled a lungful of air, her thoughts spiraling. She might lose her—her one and only love.

" _Are you sure about this plan, Sucy?"_ Loa asked. _"You should lie. What difference does it make?"_

_My karma will come for me if I lie. I should confess my crime._

Sucy sank her nails against her flesh, making a crescent moon shaped marks before muttering. "I'll tell you but not here. Seriously Akko, you shouldn't ask questions you're not prepared to hear. Please don't abandon me."

"What are you talking about, Sucy? Tell me now! No one's here to hear your deadly secret!"

A bell chimed as a newcomer went through the door. She had blank look on her face, and her purple eyes were devoid of emotions. Sucy let the grin grow on her lips.

"W-who?" Akko gasped.

At the sight of the newcomer, Sucy plucked the guts to profess everything. "Ah, I've been waiting for you... took you long enough. Close the door behind you, please."

The girl looked hollowed as if she was yanked away from bed early in the morning. She did as she was told. Akko started to analyze her appearance, a suspicion forming in her head. "Is that—?"

"One of Cavendish's acquaintances," she answered.

Akko's forehead creased. "What's she doing here?"

Sucy shrugged. "I made her go here."

"What?" Akko tilted her head towards the Canadian. "That really doesn't answer why. Hey, what are you doing here?"

"She can't hear you, Akko."

"How come?" she inched closer to her, waving a hand over her face. "I-is she sleepwalking?" she snapped multiple times in front of her. "Hey wake up! You're a long way from home!"

Sucy yanked the doll from inside her pocket and stared at it, boringly.

" _I bid you luck."_ Loa murmured her voice dripped with a hunger for blood.

"Does she do this frequently?" Akko looked back and forth, on the verge of panic. "You looked calm, Sucy—hey! It's not time to play with your doll!"

Sucy caressed Loa's face. "Are you aware of the craft of voodoo, Akko?"

"Only from the stories," she replied.

"So you have a general idea. At least I won't have a hard time explaining it to you."

" _Are you certain this plan won't backfire on you?"_  Loa queried.

Sucy was certain. Her decision finalized in stone. To keep Professor Ursula from working against her was to ensure that she won't bring harm's way to Akko. If Sucy pulled her beloved down the rabbit hole, deeper with her, she will relent.

" _And if your precious girl backs out?"_

Atsuko Kagari was her strong point and her fatal flaw. Sucy trusted her with all her might. After all, she was going to bare her mind, her soul, and her heart to the girl.

"What are you going to explain?"

"I think actions speak louder than words," Sucy said as the doll flew from her hands.

"Wow!" Her eyes glazed at the tremendous display in front of her. "Sucy! I didn't know you were into magic tricks too!"

"This is where you're wrong, Akko. It's real, not a simple trick nor an illusion."

Sucy reached for the locket resting on her décolleté and pulled out Akko's hair. She then yanked a strand of hers from her head and tied the ends together before wrapping it around the floating doll's neck along with the Canadian's hair.

Everything started to blur in Akko's vision. Her eyes began to turn black and the sound of ominous water splashing slowly ebbed away from her ears. Sucy transferred her vision to Akko from the past few weeks. The shorter girl stood there, transfixed at the memories shown to her in such a short amount of time.

The last bizarre thing Sucy saw before Akko screamed were the bright burning red eyes—eyes like glowing infernos, gazing hypnotically into hers.

Akko lost strength in her knees as she fell to the ground. She managed to save her face by planting both palms on the floor. The real color of her eyes was returning. "W-what was that?"

If someone would ask her, Sucy would prefer to have their minds connected always. But the dangers of prolonged mind connection were not to be trifled with. So in order to stop Akko from succumbing to madness, she grabbed the doll and tore off their hairs except for the purple one, removing their empathic mind link.

Sucy carried on bending Loa's arms, contorting the Canadian's body in many ways that are impossible without breaking her bones.

Akko watched as the girl obeyed Sucy's unspoken beckoning, her jaw dropping in horror. Sucy instantly threw the doll towards Akko, sending the Canadian sideways. Her body toppled, sprawled into the air, and would have hit the concrete if not for Akko's catch response.

She looked at Sucy for clarification, hesitantly at first, as if Sucy was about to strike her.

"It's real," Akko mumbled.

Sucy smiled, crooked and familiar. She crossed her arms. Hoping Akko can't see her flush in the dim light. Akko stared at her, her eyes with intent, burning red as they traced Sucy's face. Slowly, her lips fell and the smile faded as she remembered her decision of telling Akko the truth. But Akko's stare remained, and Sucy felt fire rise inside her. Rage and want and regret in equal measure.

"Don't look at me like that, Akko."

"W-what... h-happened to you, Sucy?" she asked, her lips stuttering.

Akko looked paler than usual, cheeks drained of color but in shame or fear, Sucy can't tell. Maybe it's exhaustion from the spell or pain. In spite of it, she is every inch a determined girl.

"It was horrible to see her like this, unnaturally punished.

Sucy exhaled loudly and shrugged. "I woke up and felt as if a fire alarm had set off inside my body. I tried to stop it but I couldn't. You see, Akko. It started out small, my intrusive thoughts. Then it got bigger. Bigger and wilder until when I was given the opportunity, I seized it, it's only human nature to strive for power nobody else could get."

"S-so voodoo... is real? And you inherited it."

Sucy bit her lip, gaze locked on hers. Liking what she's seeing. She ambled towards the Canadian's direction. When she spoke again, her voice changed, softened in a feather-light whisper, "Poor thing. I guess puppeteering is a better alternative than death for her." She stared at the controlled girl, strangely forlorn. "You're aware I can't let her move on. She dug around Dr. Adam's past. She dug through yours too."

The Canadian's mouth was parted, eyes open and empty, unseeing.

Sucy's voice was like a death sentence. Akko squeezed her eyes shut, as Sucy retrieved the doll from her clutch. "W-what are you going to do with her?"

"Are you scared, for her Akko?" she asked, before flicking a finger to the doll's stomach. The Canadian coughed out blood from the blunt force trauma, injuring her liver. "Or are you scared of me?"

Akko dropped her gaze as if in shame. Her long curved lashes shaded her red eyes from Sucy's; making her wonder where Akko's thought had taken her. It was as if the head was still spinning at the whirlwind of their sudden revelation and encounter. "No, I'm never scared of you."

"Oh, is that so?"

"You know what, Sucy. I lied." Akko removed the Shiny Chariot phone case from her phone and took out a piece of golden hair. "I have Diana's hair with me. She actually gave it to me willingly."

Sucy's eyes shimmered at the sight of it. The key to winning was finally inches away from her fingertips. "Why did you lie to me?"

"Chariot warned me about hairs last night." Akko spoke, conversantly, "Said that full names and hairs both give another person the power and authority upon another so I'm not supposed to mess with it, but you're important to me, Sucy and I know this hair's important to you too."

Sucy tilted her head to the side, observing her. "So, you're essentially okay with knowing that I killed Thomas and his goons for you?"

Akko's effervescent face faded into a somewhat unreadable blank, if not for the glare in her eyes and the sneer slowly forming on her lips, Sucy would have to guess.

"They deserved it. And you did it all for me, didn't you Sucy?"

"Oh, Akko," she breathed and then stepped forward to touch her brown hair gently. "I knew you would understand."

In that heartfelt moment, they both got tears in their eyes. Akko came to embrace Sucy—the twisted creature that only a select few could love.

When Akko hugged her, Sucy clung to her like she was a lifeline. "I'm sorry I turned out to be this way," she whispered and she felt Akko nodded over her shoulder.

"It's okay," the shorter girl said as her hands rubbed over Sucy's back to shoo away her guilt. "All this time, you've felt that way for me. I wouldn't have known, really. You were always so mean to me."

"I'm sorry, Akko. I... I just wasn't sure how to show you my affection. I admit those guinea pig days were absolute shit. I never meant any ill will to you."

"Shh," she continued patting her. "I just want you to know... you didn't turn out to be like this because you've always been like this. Everyone has three faces. What you show to the world, what you show to your close friends and your family and what you never show anyone. But you showed it to me... Those little thoughts that formed in your head—no matter how little or big— defines who you are, Sucy. No matter what secrets you hide from your outside appearance. You are always my friend."

"Akko..."

"So please continue showing me your demons and your whole person and I will show you mine too. You're a very special person for me, Sucy. I love you too."

Her heart was crying tears of joy. Tightening her arms around her beloved, she saw a flash of the doll floating behind the shorter girl.

" _She has no knife."_

Sucy glowered.

" _She's taking it so well, I don't trust her. Anyone can betray you. Friends, as well as lovers, are not a threat to be taken lightly."_

Everything had a conclusion. Whether it was sweet or bitter, but once their embrace ended, there was a metallic bitter taste on Sucy's tongue. She had not noticed that she bit herself. Akko smiled at the funny look on her face, but at that moment, her bright red eyes narrowed to her mouth.

"You need help biting those lips?" she asked in a low husky voice Sucy had never heard her make in her entire life. The request was exciting, it made her tremble, eating her inside. All of a sudden, she found it hard to breathe properly. A stir of heat went through her body.

Sucy couldn't control herself once it has started but she always wished for this and now the opportunity is presented. She must not miss this chance. "Yes," she whispered back.

Akko's eyes darkened. She wasted no time and just lunged at her.

And before Sucy knew it, her beloved's mouth was hot on hers. Sucy brought her hand to the brunette's neck; her sleek long tongue slipped through Akko's opening lips and her other hand snaked around her waist, pulling Akko into her.

Akko moaned into their insatiable kiss as Sucy's hand wormed its way to inside her clothes.

"Sucy! Not there," she moaned. Her voice was raw with impending desire, and Sucy marveled over her desperation. The shorter girl's hands had found their way into her puce hair, but then she began to pull away from Sucy's mouth soundly. "We need to stop, it's rude to do it here," she said, panting heavily.

"Yeah," Sucy gasped for breath. "I don't think I could stand it any longer if we keep it up. I might take you to the counter." Then she shifted herself around uncomfortably. A strained look on her face and they both blushed scarlet. There was something else that Sucy needed to know, so she wiped her eyes and spoke again. "So what did Chariot told you, besides the names and hair?"

Akko thought about it for a second before raising a pointy finger. "Last night, she taught me how to be aware of my surroundings more often, like how to know if a place is surrounded with hidden cameras and listening devices."

Sucy blinked before she squints her eyes, "That's very random."

"Yeah, but she said it saved her life all the freaking time so I needed to learn it." Akko grabbed her phone and scrolled down her contact list, dialing their friend, Amanda. "Like, for example."

It didn't take a full minute for the American to answer the call, "Yo, Akko?"

"Heya, Amanda, talk for me for a while!" Akko said, putting her on speaker phone.

"Eh, why?" she whined. "You're in an awkward situation?"

Akko laughed but played along. "Yeah more or less," she started walking around the flower shop. There was an unexpected signal interference when Akko stood by the counter and she used the phone to carefully check to find out whether there is something hidden in there.

"Hello? Amanda? You've gone!" Akko began rummaging through the bouquets, destroying some of its structure.

Amanda's voice came in static, "...hear me?"

A visible gasp escaped Akko's lips. "Call you next time, Amanda. Bye!" She turned her phone off while their friend yelled back at her. Akko looked back at her, her eyes bulging. "Uh... Sucy?"

"Yes?"

"Was this here for about quite some time?"

Akko grabbed what seemed like a small USB flash drive from the pre-made bouquets. What made it even more suspicious was the tiny red light emanating at the side. It was a device that could have been ordered online by everyone.

A thousand questions rammed into Sucy's head of who could have been witnessing their conversation the whole time.

" _It appears as if we have an audience,"_ Loa whispered.


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was actually rewritten twice because I lost the file. Nothing major changed. Just the way its phrased and worded. I myself prefer the first version, but oh well.

Chapter 18

After her visit to Detective Inspector's place, Diana returned back home as soon as possible. Bored out of her mind for being able to study for her exams the previous days, Diana decided to head towards the family library.

The library was a long and dark immense room, and it was quiet as a graveyard. The ceiling must have been twenty feet high. The shelves went all the way up, and there was a little stairway of iron that curved to a second level, and a balcony where Diana could reach books on that level. And on the lower level were two wooden ladders that slid along railings put there for that purpose. Diana could see the gaping spaces, like teeth, missing in the long rows of leather-bound, gold-tooled, hub bed-spined expensive books.

The smell of old books was apparent in the air and no matter how much they tried to preserve them, a long shelf life has its inevitable end. Diana could remember as if it was fresh in her mind that her mother would buy her new editions of books and taught her how to take care and preserve it so that the future generations of the Cavendish would be able to hold in their hands what their ancestors once held.

A desk was there, dark and massive, must have weighed a ton, and a tall leather swivel chair was behind it, and Diana could just picture her mother, and her grandmother and all the matriarchs before her sitting there—issuing orders right and left, and studying.

There was a dark mahogany filing system made to look like fine furniture. Two very long, soft, sofas were set out from the walls about three feet, giving people plenty of room to move behind them. Chairs were placed near the fireplace, and, of course, there was a batch of tables and chairs and things to stumble against, and an awful lot of bric-a-brac.

Among one of the secret doors from behind the bookshelves was a chamber of a secret hospital to help and cure people in need.

The night wore on. Diana returned to reading the medical books for leisure. Diana was now sitting on a cushioned armchair by the open window, reading when her phone rang.

"Hello Andrew?" she answered, putting the phone near her ear. "Have you returned home?"

"I'm fine." He cautioned in a hurried tone. "I merely called to see if you feel alright."

"Why would I be not?" Diana noticed that he was fumbling on something and possibly running. "Where are you right now?"

Andrew took a staggering amount of time before he even replied. "There are dark forces out there, Diana. Be careful."

"What on earth?" Diana's voice started rising from anger. She wanted him to start saying things without abstract thoughts, but her question was only replied with laborious breathing before his phone went off.

Puzzled, she was left to wonder what that phone call could have meant.

* * *

" _ **What's the**_  meaning of this Akko?" Sucy's body is tight as a coiled wire; ready to chant spells if this calm is just a trap.

"Eh? Don't ask me! I was just showing you what Chariot taught me! Calling someone on a phone picks up frequencies sometimes." The device slipped from her grasp and she had to catch it back with theatrics. "You mean this wasn't supposed to be here?"

Sucy stared at the spying device. It looked like it could be procured by anyone who has internet. She couldn't see who was beyond the listening device, whoever the spy was, was safe in their nest. It could be Professor Ursula for all she could know. She must not take any chances; however, so she grabbed it, dropped it on the floor and crushed it with the sole of her shoes.

"Uh, don't you think we could as Professor Ursula to help us track who owns it?"

The door thrown open wide made them both jump, startled out of their skin, allowing a broad and familiar silhouette to step into the room. Sucy was preoccupied with his headgear before noticing he was holding something on both of his hand. He went towards the human ragdoll and gently pressed his knuckles to the Canadian's face, urging her awake. She didn't even shift to his touch. "Wake up, Avery. Please try to get out of the spell."

Sucy expected company but still her heart jumped, adrenaline pumping at the sight of the intruder. Cavendish ought to tightly leash her lapdog. She quickly grabbed her floating doll as her lips curled in distaste.

"Oh, so you've witnessed everything."

With haste, Hanbridge ran towards Akko, shouldering her with a marked force, colliding with her. A whoosh was heard as the air went out of Akko's lungs, successfully knocking the golden hair strand out of her fingers. He wasted no time in spraying fire to destroy it.

Shocked, Akko ran to take refuge behind Sucy who stood in front of her in a protective stance, spreading her free hand as a shield from the perpetrator.

"How dare you waltz in here, and destroy my hair collection without any regards to your well-being?" She watched him quietly, waiting for him to speak. His throat worked, bobbing between the open folds of his collar. He focused on keeping his grip on his weapon, fingers tight on the makeshift flamethrower made with a bottle of spray and lighter.

"You're insane," he muttered, settling into a wide-legged stance.

" _GET HIM NOW SUCY!"_

Sucy raised the doll; ready to use the Canadian to tackle him but Hanbridge swiftly directed his inferno towards them. The temperature rose, a rippling heat caused Sucy to let go of Loa, her fingers charred.

Sucy all but snarled at him and looked down, wincing. Her faithful servant on fire was screeched gurgling sounds of pain, dousing Sucy's eardrums Yet, it wasn't holy fire so as the flames evaporated; the doll seemed to be unharmed similar to a Professor from middle school merely drenched a pound with rubbing alcohol and burned it. The only purpose the fire succeeded was to lose Loa's control over the Canadian girl who fainted.

A laugh like nails on glass burst from the doll, remaining motionless on the ground. A muscle quivered on Sucy's jaw, attempting not to show her smile for Loa acted dead. And thus, gave Hanbridge feint to lure him into a false sense of security.

"Where is Cavendish?" Sucy droned. "You seem to be acting alone."

He clenched his jaw, green eyes boring into hers. "No, Diana knows... and I've got tricks up in my sleeves." something in his voice gave Sucy a pause, a low tremor of resolve.

"You're lying," Sucy said. "And even if you're not, I still have the upper hand."

They started to resemble wolves circling in the dark, predators testing each other, searching for openings, weaknesses, and opportunities.

His eyes dart back and forth, from the only possible escape route to the danger that stood, looming over them. Hanbridge was eager to be rid of this place. They needed to go. Steady with the Canadian; he slid one arm behind her shoulders and another under her knees, before scooping her up. Pocketing back his weapon—A mistake.

Sucy took the chance.

With a flick of her fingers, Loa swooped towards him menacingly. Taken aback by the sight of such demonic object, Loa managed to remove his woolen headgear and plucked a dark strand from his disheveled head.

A dark chuckle rose from Sucy's throat. "You fool! Everyone knows you need holy relics to combat supernatural forces."

His heartbeat doubled while hers stayed its rhythm.

Loa handed her the hair while she added. "And did you really think that a mere bonnet would hinder me from retrieving your hair?"

Hanbridge moved the still unconscious girl to carry her over one shoulder, glancing between her and the doll. He looked oddly vulnerable in spite of his fashioned weapon. As if weighing which he should be frightened more—the master or the cursed doll. "As you all know, adrenaline eats fear and do wonders."

"I suppose. Though I will admit, you've always kept pace as Cavendish walked around everywhere like some sort of dog tugged along on an invisible leash. I never see you acting on your own."

"Diana is born with a malignant sense of justice as you were born with diabolical monstrosity." He goaded. "And I would do anything to follow her to ensure she will fulfill her destiny. She would be the one who will bring you down."

"YOU DON'T KNOW A DAMN THING ABOUT ME!" A shadow passed over her face, Sucy squinted into him, her eyes narrowing into slits. "SHUT UP!"

Due to the intensity of her anger, Hanbridge was about to spray fire towards them once more but Sucy pressed the dark strand on Loa's head, giving him a massive headache.

Hanbridge stumbled. The unconscious girl included. It was a searing pain Sucy projected onto him like a jackhammer doing its work. He couldn't even scream for help.

"That's enough! Sucy!" Akko said stepping bodily between them, she all but hauled Loa away.

Sucy turned her away as gently as she could. Her stand was tall and purposeful. Her gaze never left the gaping and voiceless Andrew Hanbridge.

He hoisted himself to his feet, teetering as he wagged his head back and forth, trying to shake away the daze. Using the nearest table, he propped himself up, leaning heavily.

"Sucy, please no," Akko tried to speak to her and to pull her back again, but Sucy didn't budge at her plea.

Hanbridge was no longer making any sound. He was just kneeling there, staring back with the blankest look on his blood-drained face.

"I have put up enough with this one," Sucy growled from the deep of her chest. "You might be as good as dead. When I'm through with you, you'll be in a vegetative state"

"Sucy, don't do that!" Akko cried.

As much as she loved her, Sucy didn't listen and merely held Hanbridge's empty stare. His body started trembling in a seizure.

"Say goodbye to your sanity, asshole," Sucy muttered icily. She then tied the short hair around Loa's accommodating neck and started chanting in Latin and  _Baybayin—t_ he lost language of her ancestors.

In the process, Sucy's eyes burned with unnatural light. Her clothes ruffled, and her bangs that typically covered her left eye lifted from a jarring breeze that circled her. This was also the first time Akko saw both of her eyes before it all turned black—even her sclera.

Whatever Sucy was projecting was probably the same thing she witnessed either in nightmares or real life. Sucy imagined a thousand things. A million different forms of violence and pain, but no one would fill the void of her emptiness, only this time it was more sinister and painful. And now Hanbridge was on the receiving end of this highest form of brutality. Sucy didn't know she was already capable of doing this high tier spell.

The Brit was probably right. Adrenaline can eat fear and can do wonders.

Then Hanbridge's pale face contorted. His hands went up to clutch his head, scratching his hair. He threw his head back and screamed in a strangled choking voice.

"Sucy, please stop!" Akko cried again and came to put herself between her and the tortured young man. Her tears flowed freely over her frightened face. "Please listen to me!"

It was only when Sucy heard Akko sobbing that she blinked and turned to look at her. Her eyes stopped glowing and stopped. Hanbridge finally collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

"Why are you doing this?" Akko lashed out and pounded her chest with her small fist.

Blinking, Sucy pulled her back by the shoulders, searching Akko's gaze in distress and bewilderment.

"Akko?" she said, schooling her features into something softer, more caring, as she shifted closer to her to whisk away her beloved's tears "Why are you crying?"

"No, Sucy! You're being cruel!" she yelled and nudged her hand away. "You did worse to me than him. You're so mean, and I hate you!"

"What?" Sucy looked at her long and hard like she did have the slightest clue of what Akko just said. She genuinely couldn't comprehend why Akko was upset.

"You know what!" she huffed, puffing her cheeks stubbornly.

She sputtered; blinking at her like Akko told her to cut out her own beating heart. "I don't know why you're so angry at me. I just saved our lives from that sorry piece of shit!"

Sucy must get to the bottom of this. Akko was acting like those prissy characters from whatever superhero movie she was forced to watch with her. Sucy gave one look at Loa and commanded. "Stay here and close the shop. Make sure they don't stir awake and not let anyone get in. Also, better make sure no one saw what went through the binds."

" _As you wish, Sucy,"_ she said floating away towards the door.  _"I don't want any part of this mercurial drama at all."_

Just like that, Sucy wrapped her strong arms around Akko and forced her to walk away with her from the spot towards the back door.

Akko tried to shrug her hold off, but she wouldn't let go. "Where are you taking me?"

Sucy begged. "Please. We need to talk."

"So now you want me to listen?"

"Akko..."

"Don't Akko me!"

Sucy grunted in her throat and only sped walking even faster towards the small greenhouse room where some of the flowers were naturally grown. They skirted around the garden. She released Akko and pulled her by the hand instead, and she stopped near the red flowers to help her calm down.

She turned around to Akko at last.

"Now tell me. What the hell is that? Why are you acting this way?" she demanded.

"You knew what you did, Sucy," Akko spat and turned her back at her like a sulking child.

"Akko, for fuck's sake what did I do to make you like this?" Sucy came around to face her again.

"Well damn! You want me to tell you? Alright, first of all, you need to know that it's wrong to kill an innocent person! Especially that way, it was horrible to see him unnaturally punished. It's against humanity..."

"Are you using humanity to protect that asshole?" she said. "Akko, can't you see? He caught us and he spied on us!" What would happen if we hadn't found out? I'm only trying to protect you as Professor Ursula would! This guy deserves more than this. He would tell Cavendish and she would send us to jail!"

"Diana?" she echoed, voice breaking.

"Yes, do you even know you were being used? She was only close to you to get to me!"

"No, that's not true!" Akko retorted back. "She's not like that! She's a good friend!"

Akko's hopeful friendship with Cavendish caused Sucy's heart to break. It fueled her anger, coupling with disappointment and heartache to wag like a feral storm.

"You've fooled yourself then!" she snarled.

"I'm still angry at you." Akko went on. "If you didn't mean what you said to me, you don't have to pretend like you do anymore."

"Said what?"

"That you love me and care about me!"

"But I really do!" She snapped, "How else should I say that? Damn it!"

"You're a liar, Sucy," Akko said, "Your actions proved otherwise. That was borderline psycho! You could have at least listened to me!"

"But I showed you everything. I made myself vulnerable to you. I trusted you enough to witness everything of what went on these past few weeks... you've seen my secrets, my fears, my motivations!"

Akko shifted her weight to her other foot as if weighing her words. "Then at least spare their lives."

"That's non-negotiable Akko."

"At least one of them?" she asked hopefully. Her disposition changed entirely.

"Fine," Sucy rolled her eyes. "For my scheme to work, I need one of them dead."

Akko was lucky that she was not standing under a conductor of electricity, for Sucy's anger passed like a storm cloud, leaving the threat of trembling thunder in its wake.

Sucy actually hoped to maintain innocent in the eyes of the law, if killing Cavendish's friends were not her objective, she might entertain the idea of torturing them. Not for spite, but to hopefully give Diana Cavendish some insanity. Killing one of them was the motivation, a carrot for Cavendish to follow. The Brit had so many weaknesses, and Sucy needed her weak. She needed her distracted.

As Loa said, Diana Cavendish will face the wrath.

"Okay."

"Akko, if you're done crying over paper cuts, I could use some help destroying the pieces of evidence."

* * *

_**Diana awoke**_  from her sleep and found herself alone in her bed as always. She got out of her chamber and took her fragrant bath. Going through her morning with an unexplainable heavy heart, perhaps it would be attributed to the fact that she knew she spied on Akko or the fact that Andrew called her in the middle of the night with a vague message. Perhaps it could be even the tea she accidentally spilled during breakfast.

She frequently checked her phone and all of the attempts to call and text Andrew remained unanswered. Due to this unsettling feeling, after breakfast, she called for her chauffeur to drive her to the Hanbridge manor to visit him herself.

For some reason, Diana wished to see his face again. Maybe because when she had something that troubled her and she couldn't tell anyone, Andrew had become a brother she never had, a comfort and faithful confidant.

Diana settled herself on the passenger seat as Carter pressed a key on the remote control and the engine automatically hummed to life.

Throughout the ride, the weak sun shone but the sky was dark. It's about to rain in the afternoon. Diana had a sensory overload. In order to ease her coming headache, she pinched the bridge of her nose and decided to have a power nap.

Lowering her senses proved to have its weaknesses. For once Diana hadn't realized a mob just outside a nearby recreational park near Andrew's home. If not for Carter's worried voice waking her up.

"I wonder what's happened out there."

The car had stopped running for the number of people and police directing the cars away blocked the road. Diana blinked certain that it was the Criminal Investigation Department.

"I will see for myself," Diana said as she got off the passenger seat.

"What? But Miss—" Carter glanced at her through the rear view mirror.

Diana frowned and snapped her head to him. "I will return shortly."

Walking through the whispered filled crowd, she came across the police tape and stared further, hoping to get a glimpse of the crime scene but it was too far inside the entranceway of the park.

There was a constable who possibly was taking statements from those present in the mob that gathered. "Have you seen or heard anything suspicious surrounding the area prior to this event, sir?"

"No, not at all chap."

"Constable!" A Detective Sergeant in his uniform and trench coat strode over towards his subordinate. He looked newly appointed to the area. "Have you informed the victim's family?"

"Uh yes, sir!" The young man said, keen to please his boss. "The servants replied that the father's unable to meet with us a few hours cause he's sick."

"Suspicious," his brows furrowed, planting fingers on his chin, "Definitely sounds dodgy."

"Is the death related to the serial killings happening in the area, sir?" a middle-aged woman from the crowd asked.

"We haven't ruled it out as a murder yet, madam."

"Well do something about it! Blytonbury's supposed to be a good neighborhood!"

"Don't worry. I plan to make this town less dangerous."

"You do not have to save the world alone, Sergeant," Diana spoke out loud, prompting everyone's focus to shift to her. "Hello, sir. I would like to offer you my services."

The Detective Sergeant gave Diana a contemptuous look. Passersby gathered around them. They were probably curious as to how the copper would handle this situation like Diana needed to be taught a lesson; otherwise, his authority will be undermined. "I wouldn't worry your pretty head about police work. You leave that to us, hmm?"

Diana's facial muscles twitched. She clearly knew what that phrase meant. Those were among the few lines and body language of coppers' shushing her away.

"Detective Inspector Croix Meridies finds my help invaluable."

"I'm sorry," he staggered, "Who?"

"Senior Detective Inspector Croix Meridies from the Yard would be thrilled to think I could be of assistance."

His eyes widened, caught off guard but he offered her a tight smile. "Well, I will be telephoning my report to her shortly, so I'll ask her directly."

When they focused their attention elsewhere, Diana grabbed the police line tape and moved it over her head as she crouched.

"Hey, you!"

Diana sprinted towards the scene and halted on her tracks, thinking that her eyes might be playing tricks on her.

Red spattered the earth, drying.

Diana's vision spotted, hazy with every emotion as her own brain overloaded. Everything narrowed, edged with the color of blood, until she can't hear the mass behind her. Even the yelling of the cops' voices faded, their barking orders disappearing.

There he was, his feet tied to a branch of the tree and he hung upside down. Neck prodded with a sharp knife, crimson blood spurted down his face, as it ran into his mouth and over his chin. Diana could taste the iron tang of his drained blood, upon the grassy earth, gushing in an open river at the ground; next to a beautifully arranged bouquet of red roses and tulips with a golden bow.

She saw black, red in a dizzy spiral. Andrew had slit his own throat.

Diana was frozen by what she saw, rooted and unable to breathe.

It reminded her of Frank's body and it haunted her still. When she opened her eyes, Andrew's corpse was still there, hovering in her vision. She can't shake the sight off.

"ANDREW!" she bellowed, almost sprinted when someone caught her, springing out from around the corner. She resisted the unfamiliar urge o deck and claw her way out of the grasp. "Unhand me!"

The figure grabbed her beneath the arm, dragging her through the dirt. Diana was still in shock, still paralyzed by fear, unable to do much more than kick the ground with all her might.

"It's me," a woman's voice said. "You need not see this, Diana. You should have stayed away and please resist the temptation to interfere. That way you won't have to see his body."

Diana's eyes were burning in their sockets, and she blinked desperately, trying to keep those scalding tears at bay. She wanted to scream but found her teeth welded together.

Detective Inspector Croix gaped at her, seizing her shoulder, forcing her to look her in the eye and then before Diana could react, the woman had pulled Diana's arms away from her chest and enveloped her in a tight hug.

"By Jove, Diana," the older woman whispered into her ear, her warm breath fluttering through the locks of her blonde hair, "You can be so daft." Detective Inspector Croix withdrew slightly, not stepping out of the embrace but backing up enough so that she could look Diana straight in the eye. "You can't save everyone."

The teary waterfalls came then.


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to all of those people who reviewed the previous chapters! Your comments have been very encouraging. Here's your next chapter; I hope you enjoy it!

Death is a test of what being human means. It probed human responsibilities and the community and asking what value humans place on their links to the past.

As a concept, it seemed vague, but to see it happen to someone she held dear made it real. Death was frightening. Yet perhaps more frightening and fascinating are the monsters closer to humans—the ones that walk among the crowds, the one who look like ordinary people, the ones who were people.

It was because of Diana that Andrew would not die of old age as he had deserved. And that mere thought crushed Diana more than the knowledge that today she lost the only childhood friend who had ever believed in her. She felt like she was losing a brother. She now saw just how much the young man meant to her, just how essential he had been all this time.

Diana had been so wrong about everything and every day she was paying the price for her ignorance.

"This is turning out to be such a beastly day." Detective Inspector Croix said, bringing her out of her reverie. "Diana I'm glad to see you safe. I didn't expect more bloodshed."

Diana found herself wrapped with a blanket that ambulances give to traumatized victims. Her face bare and her eyes reddish, she was well hidden and seated back at her car with the Italian woman. Carter was nowhere to be seen, however.

"Has Andrew's father responded to your calls?" Diana asked.

"Why yes. The Minister of State is such a serious and cold man, partly due to his detachment on feelings as a statesman, although the news of his son's death rattled him. I never want to talk to him again if not for my job."

Diana squeezed her eyes shut, trying not to remember. Andrew, pale, bloody and dead, the ground soaked through. Mouth parted, and eyes open, empty and unseeing.

"This new death must be connected to the first, don't you think?"

Detective Inspector Croix grunted. "I thought you would have enough."

Tired and dejected looking, Diana wilted in her seat. "Oh no, I have to go back. I haven't solved the stream of cases yet." Even so, she clenched her teeth at the memory, too fresh and still too painful.

"Very well then," she crossed her arms. "You sure you will be able to see clearly without any emotions attached to your deductive reasoning?"

Diana stared back from beneath her confounded gaze. "Yes."

Studying Detective Inspector Croix's eyes, Diana found nothing familiar and felt a small tinge of disappointment. "You should be glad you know. I'm finally taking the unprecedented step of releasing confidential correspondence with you because who would normally share details about a serial killer's latest victim to a 17-year old girl? If we are to do this, Diana, I would like you to not bandy about my name for your own convenience."

"I concur."

A sudden knock on the tinted window caused them to halt their conversation. Carter was back with a ramen cup filled with hot water for the Italian. After her expressing her gratitude, Carter pried away from the topic.

Detective Inspector Croix slurped a huge deal of noodles before speaking. "You see, the problem with some detectives is that they take everything at face value and call it a day. They ruled Hanbridge's death out as suicide."

Diana scoffed.

"Although I can't help but agree, the evidence is indeed overwhelming. There were fingerprints on the knife and the ropes. He climbed up the branch, tied his feet to the tree and jumped, hung himself upside down. Then, he cut his own vein in his jugular. There were no signs of a struggle that somebody did it to him. Furthermore, the flowers and the note indicate a farewell message."

"But he could be held at gunpoint! It may have been an elaborate ruse!"

The Detective Inspector went quiet for a moment as if to regard the situation. "Is Andrew Hanbridge depressed?"

"What?"

"You might not see it, Diana." She blew the steam out from her cup. "But even his parents' divorce might have caused him depression. He just never asked for help about it. It could have grown in his head. The little death of ecstasy becomes the real thing. Not murder, manslaughter, then overwhelming remorse, self-loathing, and a final attempt to obliterate it all."

"You mean he did do it to himself?" Diana asked. The slurping noises became an apparent sound in their conversation, though Diana hadn't felt relaxed at all at the obvious ASMR beside her. "He called me yesterday, he seemed fine. I have known Andrew for more than 15 years—"

"Has he been affectionate lately?" she asked, gulping down. "Do you even know if he had someone to talk to about his problems without being ashamed? Because you never knew he was saying goodbye. Most suicides in men came unexpectedly because all his friends and loved ones thought they were fine and getting better. You wouldn't have known that he was buying you flowers as a way to say farewell. You can't let your judgment be clouded by personal involvement. And when it comes down to it, Diana, how well can one person really know another?"

Diana staggered before swallowing her pride. "Please proceed."

"I made the men you met earlier to transfer the case to me after I presented astounding evidence that it is indeed connected to the first case."

Diana stared at her harshly. "All your talks about face value and shreds of evidence that you believed he killed himself. So you did find something to contradict all that."

"You see before the body was discovered..." she stopped, observing Diana whether she would be conflicted to hear calling Andrew as an object or faze her in some ways. But even if Diana was hurt, she didn't show it. "I found a certain girl just a few hours before we dispatched people to Lord Hanbridge's case. This girl had been allegedly pushed down the river here in Blytonbury to drown and was brought to the hospital calling to only speak to you."

Diana's forehead creased, "Who?"

"She won't give us her last name but she wants to speak to you. She said to tell you her name is Avery."

"Avery?" Diana gasped, pushing herself towards the Italian woman who inched away from her aggressive nature. "Oh by the nine, is she okay?"

"Oh, so you do know her." Croix pushed her slightly away for some space. She looked back at her ramen cup, finding it empty. "She didn't possess any identification cards on her and since we wouldn't want the press to get hold of her, we had a hard time trying to learn who she is. She survived by grabbing onto a boulder and passed out after some folks heard her calling for help. I must say, the will to survive in a human's nature is strong against the currents."

She chuckled at her own unsavory pun.

Diana growled. "Avery was a hostage. After Andrew slashed himself, the killer pushed Avery down the river in hopes of removing evidence!"

"What have I told you about jumping into conclusions, Diana? Trust your instincts and keep your mouth shut until you find incriminating evidence. We must talk to the girl at the hospital first. I mean your hospital."

"Alright then," Diana inhaled before rolling down the windows. "Carter, get in. Bring us to the family hospital."

* * *

 ** _Fate intervened_**  that day. Or maybe it was just the weather. Sunday afternoon, it just started to rain; not such a dramatic act by itself, but one could ever know what else has been lined up amongst all the other insignificant arrangements.

The rain was almost tropical in its intensity. Hard, heavy sheets of last autumn water beating down against the shiny pavement before the winter comes. Puddles gleaming shiny and solid in the yellow gold of the electric lights inside, Sucy didn't know quite what to do, she was just buying groceries and brought neither an umbrella nor a car to provide shelter.

Akko was on at her flat with Professor Ursula, and regarding the state of what she and Akko had done, Professor Ursula told them to lie low for a while. The French woman would never beck to her call unless it was for Akko.

 _"I don't like that your beloved told her guardian everything,"_ Loa said.

It was to be expected, after all. Loa could continue her whining, but both the French and the Japanese would never utter the word to another. They would be none the wiser if they did.

"Loa, you didn't tell me Cavendish's lapdog placed a spying device within our midst," Sucy grumbled. "Everything could have been avoided yesterday."

_"Forgive me, Sucy. But I cannot detect electronics at all. All I can hear are beating hearts and blood rushing in veins."_

Sucy stayed under the shade. Amusing herself from watching others running across the slippery tarmac, she realized that as soon as she stepped outside, she would be sodden. Not just damp, not just slightly wet, but soaked to the bone, hair plastered to her face, skin saturated to such a degree that she would probably need to be wrung out type wet.

"I seem to be harboring an odd feeling, because I can't wait for Cavendish to point fingers at me, again." She whispered.

_"You left the bouquet on purpose didn't you?"_

"It's not incriminating for me as it seems. It will add to the Brit's delusions and I will grill mushrooms happily as I watch her suffer. Those little spying devices he planted on me and Akko were of his own will. He never told anyone of it, we made him tell us the truth, remember? None of those devices are left. He came to my shop to buy flowers for Cavendish on his own volition."

_"Be careful, Sucy. If you climb too high without caution, soon you slip and she can reach you."_

"I'm pleased you are looking after my well-being," Sucy said before she sneezed, an alarming one.

_"A cold-blooded killer caught a cold. What the world is coming to?"_

"Shut it," she said, blowing her nose, slowly accepted the depressing fact that she would have to linger at the convenience store near the car stops. She waited within the unwelcoming walls that suddenly ceased to be friendly and familiar when evening rolled around, so she plodded down the steps and saw a familiar face.

Sucy saw her again. If she were the mathematical type she could give the odds on two people out of eight thousand living in such close proximity seeing one another every now and again. Sucy wasn't naïve and consumed by romantic fantasy as to believe that something like that could be the work of fate. Of course, people would see one another occasionally, it was purely coincidental.

Through these incidental meetings, Sucy and that orange haired girl had progressed to exchange polite smiles and sometimes, hellos to each other. They had, as yet, not even learned one another's names, but those encounters meant a lot to her somehow.

"It's her." Sucy murmured under her breath.

 _"NO, NOT AGAIN!"_ yelled the hoarse voice of the being older than most civilizations.

Sucy gritted her teeth, staring blankly at her coat's pocket. She couldn't believe that the doll could be so intransigent about such a thing. "What's your deal with her, Loa?"

_"Are you not disturbed that whenever she's in the vicinity, I weaken?"_

"Oh, you're such a drama queen for a little cotton doll."

This fact was as disconcerting to her as it was to her scornful sentient doll. Loa kept babbling about the four-eyed girl and how she was bad news and wouldn't care to explain why. Sucy didn't like being told what to do and what not to do so unless the doll gave her a decent explanation, Sucy won't obey the doll.

Sucy observed the girl. She too was a victim of the rain and stood huddled against the large panes of glass near the door, staring out at the dismal twilight. Sucy suddenly thanked the forces of nature for the early evening darkness and unpredictable weather of autumn nearing winter.

"Nice weather," Sucy commented dryly, coming to stand by her side. It was the best icebreaker she could think of.

The four-eyed girl started, as though she had thought she was completely alone in her predicament. "Sorry?"

"I was just saying... nice weather, huh?" Sucy said it again when it had sounded lame enough the first time. It was embarrassing. She was tempted to just walk away before she made an even bigger idiot of herself, but somehow she couldn't.

"Perfect weather for sunbathing," she returned with a shy smile. The way her eyes dropped after she spoke, as though she was waiting for ridicule, was completely endearing.

If Sucy wasn't already mesmerized by her, that one gesture would have won her over. Sucy still cannot explain what happened next. She can only claim that fate, having done all the hard work, grew impatient with her timidity and began to control her.

Somehow, Loa turned quiet and Sucy actually liked the silence once in a while.

A scary thought, but the only one that can explain why, completely out of the blue, Sucy said: "You know, it looks like the rain isn't going to let up for a while. Do you want to go to the diner area? I'll buy you a drink, and if you're really lucky, a doughnut."

The instant the words had left her mouth, Sucy was overcome with mortification and she could feel a searing crimson color creeping over her entire body.

"Why thank you, my name's Lotte Jansson. I sit behind you in Philosophy class." Lotte handed her a hand to shake. "Manbavaran, right?"

Sucy grinned, shaking her hand with a firm grip with a nod. "Sucy Manbavaran."

The minute she said it, Sucy was already placing their names together in her mind. Sucy shook her head in amusement and Lotte seemed to notice her quiet laughter and smiled too, her cheeks a perfect shade of light pink.

"What are your Sunday plans before the rain came?" Sucy asked gently, wishing she had something better to say.

"Oh, I was simply buying some milk. I ran out." Lotte murmured with a sigh.

Sucy wasn't sure whether she was supposed to comment or not, and thinking about it was too difficult when she was sitting there.

"I ran out of milk the last few days too," Sucy blurted finally, for fear the silence would drive her away. "I only had to buy it because I had a roommate who liked it. It's not like I'm milkaholic or anything. What about you?"

Lotte seemed taken aback by the question but her giggle made it worth it. "Oh I'm from Finland, so I guess it's a given that milk is a necessity?"

After her breathless babbling, the question did seem quite abrupt. "What do you want to be when you grow up?"

Lotte flashed an obligatory smile and Sucy could swear she saw tears beneath the glasses. They shone so brightly in the fluorescent light, sending arrows of concern into Sucy's chest.

"I used to want to be an author," she confided with an air of embarrassment, "but not anymore."

"Why not?" Sucy asked.

She just shrugged again, wiping her eyes while pretending to flick her hair from her face. Sucy drank it all in, just being there in the almost deserted diner, so close to her finally. Knowing how she smelt, like cherries and vanilla, aware of her knee, so close to Sucy's and her cute fingers just a few inches away.

If Lotte didn't want to tell Sucy then, that was okay, because she could wait. Sucy meant to wait however long it took, even if she had to sit in that unfriendly place and smell the heavy aroma of frying fat from the kitchens forever.

Sucy changed the subject tentatively, wanting to know more, but afraid that Lotte wouldn't live up to the expectations she had.

She loved reading, especially the Night Fall series and when they got onto the subject, Lotte came to life. Her hands floating about between the two of them like two albino butterflies, her eyes gleaming like lanterns with blue flames inside. Sucy didn't want to speak, though she was sure Lotte would have paused to let her speak.

Sucy just wanted to take her in. Lotte's soft voice was so fast and animated as she listed the characters of the novel, the chapters, the subtext of feelings, the symbolism of every gesture and the foreshadowing of events. She described all that while making ecstatic noises at their mere mention.

Lotte lit something up in Sucy's cold bleak heart, she really did. Sucy had a sudden desire she wanted to be there to see Lotte talk about her passion when she could be free.

Sucy reached out for her drink, and Lotte's wrist, desperately trying to anchor her gesticulating hands, brushed softly against Sucy's fingers. It sent a painful pulse up Sucy's arm. Her stomach clenched sharply before a painful urge from her irritating nose came. Despite her best efforts, she sneezed and her can ended up in her lap.

They both leaped to their feet, with Sucy spraying soda all over the recently cleaned floor and Lotte staring wide-eyed in surprise and concern. Lotte rushed off to get napkins, anything to mop up the wet patch spreading down Sucy's skirt. And as soon as Lotte's back was turned, Sucy stopped flailing her arms and muttering curses and froze, watching her.

Sucy watched the way Lotte pulled out the chunks of thin paper from the dispenser with exaggerated haste as if she really was worried about Sucy's laundry.

For a minute Sucy thought, when Lotte returned with the bundles, that she was going to begin rubbing the stain. Lotte looked like she thought so too, because she bent down, but straightened just as quickly when she came to her senses. Maybe it was something a close friend would have done, but not someone she had known just over an hour.

Lotte's move made Sucy wonder if the Finnish girl felt the same way she did; if, for that one uninhibited moment, she had forgotten about reality and felt that the two of them had known each other forever.

"I don't think it will stain," she murmured, her eyes fixed on the table, rather than the patch on my long skirt to which she was referring. "You'll just have to wash them as normal."

"I have to do what now?" Sucy asked in mock-ignorance.

Lotte bathed Sucy in her smile and reproached her gently. "Don't tell me you're one of those grungy students who only get their clothes washed at the end of term when they go home."

"Oh no, I do my own laundry, what did I ever do to make you think I'm like those idiots?"

Eventually, Lotte smiled. This time, Sucy realized that they were still standing and the air had changed. People were beginning to come in for dinner and the darkness was sharper outside. It had stopped raining.

"Well, it was really nice talking to you," she murmured quickly as if she knew how much her leaving would hurt Sucy. She said it before Sucy could protest, offer to buy her dinner, or fall at her feet and beg her to say. She said it as if she knew that Sucy never would.

"Yes, you too," Sucy returned hastily, worried that her voice would crack. Sucy's face was feverishly hot and she was close to tears for some stupid little reason. Lotte was going away.

"You should get home, rest and drink lots of fluids," Lotte said, worrying sweetly. "You look like you're about to get much worse than a cold. The rain isn't helping either."

"Yes, I will. Thank you for caring."

"It's the last week for the semester tomorrow. Good luck with your exams."

"Y-you too."

The rain had vanished and Sucy cursed the fact that the sky was clear. She wanted more time with her. They walked down the steps together and then she wandered off into the night, tucking her short hair timidly behind her ears in the way that Sucy already adored. The tears in Sucy's eyes blurred Lotte's form away as she cut through the dark.

_"Sucy..."_

"Oh Loa," Sucy gasped, cutting her out of her previous notion. "You're back. You missed a lot."

 _"Be careful with that girl..."_ she could hear nails grazing on a chalkboard as the doll spoke.  _"She's no ordinary girl. She's... something else."_

"W-what do you mean?"

_"She's manipulating your feelings. She's making you fall for her."_

"What?" Sucy gasped at the stupendous accusation, "How on earth?"

"Look, mommy, she's talking to herself!" a little kid happened to see her.

Sucy's heart soared at the little boy bluntly staring and pointing at her. The boy's mother simply gave her son a disapproving look before pulling him away.

"Exams huh?" she contemplated. "I forgot."


	20. Chapter 20

"How's her vital statistics?" Diana wasted no seconds to ask the nurse in shift upon entering Avery's hospital room guarded by a few constables at the door.

"She's stabilized, Lady Cavendish," the nurse replied. "Blood pressure and heart rate are monitored closely."

Diana felt her worries eased, "Any injuries?"

"Internal bleeding from a mild liver laceration, Miss," the nurse smiled as she glanced at the future head, the detective, and the patient. "Patient should remain in bed until the tests show bleeding has stopped. I will come back again to check on her."

A new and uplifting thought dawned on Diana. "Thank you."

The nurse nodded before leaving.

They hovered over Avery as she stirred awake. Diana quickly switched the lamp off, leaving just a dime of the yellowy one above the headboard. It took Avery a while to collect her thoughts and realized where she was.

"Diana?" Avery's eyes had no light in them, giving Diana an alarm for concern. She barely recognized Avery's voice. It came so airily and weak.

"I'm right here," she said in a grievous tone. "Everything's okay. You are fine." Her reassuring voice contradicted with the painful look on her face.

Avery tried to sit up, but Diana stopped her. Her purple eyes were not the same without its usual mischievous sparkle.

"You'd better rest some more."

"No, no, I must tell you, before I forget."

"Very well then," Diana said, sitting down next to her and grasping the shorter girl's hand. "Avery, have you any recollections about what occurred?"

Forehead creasing, Avery looked around in confusion. The Detective Inspector leaned by the door of the room, patiently listening. Avery suddenly had no memory of coming to this place. "I... I don't remember. I know the memory was in here somewhere… I was about to tell you! It was like a record that had been scratched or the burned film that gave out images in a disoriented view."

Diana inhaled sharply. "You were drowning and you said someone pushed you."

"Yes, yes... someone did."

"Who was it, Avery?"

Avery's face contorted as her facial muscles tighten, she bowed her head in shame. "I don't remember."

"What about the silhouette? Was it a man or a woman?"

"I can't tell." Something just clicked together, as if her intelligent light bulb just switched on. "It was like someone one who blended well in shadows. I can't help but feel there's some hideous truth lurking in a dark corner of my mind. I remember Andrew. He was carrying me, trying to get me away from danger. He managed so far... until his knees gave in and then dropped me to the ground."

Diana grasped the girl's cold and shaking hands, "Anything else, Avery?"

Avery searched Diana's face in panic. "I remember jumping."

"Jumping?"

"Yes, jumping!" Avery gripped on Diana's arm harder than ever. "However it was not of my own volition. It feels like I was possessed; like I was watching my body being controlled by someone else, a mere puppet on strings!"

A flicker of fear flashed her face. Diana hissed. "Avery, you are hurting me..."

Avery's free arm reached for Diana's crown as her voice raised an octave higher. Diana managed to dodge the evading hand a little. She saw a stray strand of her hair between Avery's fingers that was pulled in the commotion.

As more words came out of her mouth, Diana felt like Avery was so close onto tearing her skin. If not for the Detective Inspector pulling them apart, Diana couldn't get out of Avery's vice-like grip.

"You should rest, kid." She said with a low growl.

Tears began to fall from her eyes. "Y-yeah, I should. I... feel tired all of a sudden." Avery held onto the piece of DNA like a lifeline.

The Detective Inspector pulled Diana out of the room and into the white tiled floor and white painted wall hallway. Diana gasped in horror upon inspecting her arm. Avery's fingernail had torn some of her skin. Now it looks like angry claw marks given by a cat.

"She seemed so shaken." Detective Inspector Croix observed.

"She was on the verge of death, I would be too." Diana ran a finger over her torn skin.

"She's a necessary witness. She's valuable. But, she's traumatized. I will have to send some more coppers to guard over her, also some psychiatrist to help her recover. It would be distasteful if the girl is harmed by the killer or by herself. I have to know though, Diana. Have you any idea why they were targeted?"

"They were close to me." Diana didn't miss a beat.

"Really?" the older woman's brow furrowed. "If I were them, I should have gone straight to you."

"Either to scare me or to play a game," Diana paused, reiterating to herself what she had just thought.

"Oh Diana," she chuckled. "I didn't know you were such a threat."

Diana saw dripping sarcasm from her words. "But why would she kill Andrew and not Avery? It wasn't difficult to connect the dots."

"Murder alone makes no sense, but perhaps an accidental killing. A clandestine dalliance went wrong, per say."

"You mean..." a flash of memory hit Diana like a lightning. "Before Andrew and I separated ways, he placed a tracking device on Akko's hood jacket. He was on a stakeout for my entire wellbeing."

"Akko?" Detective Inspector Croix asked. "You mean Atsuko Kagari? The girl the late Kinsleys laid their injustice? You lost me by mentioning Andrew Hanbridge spied on her."

Diana had dived into the deluded depths of her reasoning mind. She ignored the older woman as she fit the puzzles together. "Yes, after Akko and I were together, he followed Akko somewhere and perhaps Miss Avery was in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"I don't know what the fuck you were referring to but that sounds like too much of a coincidence." She crossed her arms together, reprimanding. "Even if your line of reasoning is plausible that Sucy Manbavaran is the killer we're searching for, there has to be a reason why Miss Avery is warranted by her wrath."

"I made Avery poke around into her past."

Detective Inspector Croix gaped, blinking. "You... did... WHAT?"

"Along with Akko's actually; perhaps Avery found something that she had to act quickly."

"Diana Cavendish! That was unprecedented and basically stupid! You hired an informant without guaranteeing her safety, I expected much from you."

She stared at the taller woman, unfazed with the raised voice. "I know you interviewed all the staff when you're investigating, but never underestimate the power of downstairs gossip. Avery happens to be good at retrieving them and exterminating all possible risks to her safety."

"Exterminate risks you say," she rolled her eyes. "Yeah right, look where that got her."

"Something must have gone wrong somewhere? And besides, it's just background checking, it wasn't supposed to be a perilous mission. I don't suppose you know why they specifically targeted Andrew and Avery then?"

"We might be asking the wrong question." Croix crossed her arms. "We don't know where Andrew and Avery were taken, we don't know what went on with them, and we don't have any physical evidence that ties us to our killer. They have clearly been planning this for a while. Whoever killed all those boys and tried to kill Miss Avery is a ghost who doesn't want to be found."

"Then what's the right question?"

"Who is Atsuko Kagari, and what does she mean to our ghost?"

"Inspector, you are basically agreeing with me that Atsuko Kagari is our connection to the killer." She placed a hand on her heart in mock happiness. "Can it be true? Do you finally?"

Detective Inspector Croix rolled her eyes, but she was being serious when she said. "Yes, I must admit, Atsuko Kagari adds up. And besides, I've observed the pattern of known serial killers the past 30 years. We're dealing with someone new who's very creative in her modus operandi. Share the information you retrieved from Miss Kagari while we look at a different perspective. But I must say, good work, fellow sleuth."

A small pat in the back seemed to serve as no feat but it made a smile to quickly dance on her lips. Diana placed a deliberate finger on her chin. "May I see Andrew's farewell message again?"

The Detective Inspector sighed and grabbed a handy copy of her case files on her phone's cloud, "Here."

"Here's my version of what happened though, Diana." Detective Inspector Croix said. "What if Avery, being a gossip fodder, was merely just killer's latest victim and it's just by sheer happenstance that Hanbridge stumbled upon the scene, while he's investigating or spying this Atsuko Kagari."

Diana's eyes swam onto the pictures on the phone while listening to her. Her fingers zoomed in and swiped as she meticulously searched for anything out of the ordinary. With an intake of breath, she said. "This isn't his penmanship."

"I beg your pardon?"

Diana zoomed into the photo. "I hadn't noticed it before because I was preoccupied with his state. This isn't his penmanship, I'm sure of it. His penmanship isn't that eligible when using cursive. Look at the swirls."

"Huh," the older woman smirked. "We should take great analysis with his other writings then. So, we have a slight chance to think his death was murder. You mentioned he talked to you yesterday, what did he say?"

Diana didn't need to dwell further; she could remember it clear as day.

It was a code.

She repeated the same words to her before cursing under her breath. "By the nines Andrew, Why didn't you ask for my help?"

"Sounds like he's preparing for danger, like all idiots do." she sneered. "Also, Diana less I forget, I have a better informant who you might want to work with at school."

"Who is this blessed person?" Diana crossed her arms.

"Me!"

A jolly scream from behind came surprisingly. It made Diana jolt, her mouth to forming the name, "Wangari?"

"Sorry I'm late, I couldn't find my shoes." The Luna Nova News Network President and reporter grinned at her. She was barefooted though and started narrating in her recorder in substitute of her microphone. "Scotland Yard: home of the world's most famous detective force specializes in the training of detectives and the way it investigates the crime. It is the cutting edge of crime detection. Detective Inspector Croix Meridies of the Yard, the Jane Tennison of the Met Detectives arrived at what she believes to be the first crime scene—Thomas Kinsley's murder. Further clues are emerging. She finds herself in trouble, asking for assistance from a recreational sleuth. By now, the serial killer believed himself to be above the law. As young Consulting Detective Diana arrived at the latest crime scene, the scenery gives her grisly clues. Cavendish knows what's happening but solid evidence is missing. Their only hope is to catch her criminal opponent red-handed. This is a huge case that will make or break her."

Diana couldn't believe her eyes and stared at the Detective Inspector. "So you two have been working since the beginning?"

"Uh no," Wangari said, pausing her recorder then stretching her legs apart as if she was practicing for a split. "The first article I wrote about Thomas and his chums were information I got when Amanda O'Neill helped me steal the files on the Inspector's desk."

Diana merely sent her a disapproving look while Detective Inspector Croix shrugged. "I found incriminating evidence that led me to her and now I gave her a proposition to work for me instead of punishing her for stealing."

"Isn't that illegal?" Diana asked.

The taller woman handed Diana some files she kept from inside her suit. "Wangari's legal and here's a nondescript disclosure she signed."

As Diana inspected the papers, "To the journalist's great delight, I must say."

"Oh my, Diana, it sounds like you doubt my investigative journalism."

"Trust me, I had never doubted your investigative skills, I distrusted your handling with information. You have the tendency to be sensationalist and sometimes outright dishonest. What do you have to say for yourself, Wangari?"

Wangari raised her shoulders. "I did it so that the Newspaper club in Luna Nova will continue running. Our club was on the verge of death you know."

"That sounds to me like you fail to capture your viewer's attention. And I don't suppose writing the relations about the Cavendishes and Handbridges, for instance, is only one-quarter factual with the remaining three-quarters being pure fabrication. Are you trying to get me in your crosshairs, Wangari?"

"True, nothing ever good and important happens in Luna Nova, after all, that's why I started publishing that 'sounds like your typical romance scam' thing."

"Alas, I assure you the odds of Gaelle and Professor Pisces romantically involved is as zero percent as my relationship with Andrew!"

"Those days are over, Diana! Have you heard what I just said before? Have you read my articles lately? I've greatly improved! Something good is finally happening to Blytonbury and the academy! This is when my skill will shine! A journalist's work is never done."

Detective Inspector Croix chuckled at their exchange. "Wangari's an enthusiastic recruit. Not the type to let a dead body get on the way of her naked ambition."

"Fine," Diana said. "Nevertheless, these disputable procedures of yours must not hinder our way of finding the truth."

"Good work, Diana. You're finally warming up to her." The older woman said, patting her shoulder before addressing her informant. "What have you found so far about Paul Hanbridge and why he didn't respond immediately when he was informed of his son's death?"

"Other than the fact he doesn't favor minorities in the name of politics?" Wangari asked. "He paid a visit to Lord Fafnir after attending Frank's funeral, and he was bedridden for a while."

"Lord Fafnir, the wealthy shareholder?" The Detective Inspector asked while cocking her left eyebrow in disbelief. "My, my, what business did he have with Lord Fafnir then?"

"Asides from the crookedness, Lord Fafnir is an alleged crime lord of illegal cocaine, another business maybe?" Wangari spoke while imitating the manner in which she had maneuvered the line. "Or the Earl has found himself loving powdered donuts?"

"Well, whatever's going on, it's suspicious. I must pay both a visit." Detective Inspector Croix deliberated before sending a look at Diana's way. "You don't need to come with me. If I haven't any luck questioning them, I will send you next."

Diana seethed a conspicuous strain on her jaw. "Right, I'm certain the Earl wouldn't want to see me once he learns why. I will try my luck searching for the mysterious penmanship in the meantime. Since it came with a bouquet with wrappings exactly like the ones Frank has, I'm heading back to a certain flower shop."

"Excellent work, Diana, keep your eyes and ears open. Also, you two might be too busy this week. It's the last week of the semester, isn't it?"

Wangari turned on her recorder once again. "Consulting Detective Diana Cavendish may have aspired from the fictional sleuth Sherlock Holmes, but every superhero needs her nemesis. And if Cavendish is Sherlock, then the Yard is soon to face her arch enemy—A real-life Moriarty. But there's a higher chance that our Sherlock isn't facing a Moriarty but a Ripper instead. In the context of the history of serial killing, the Ripper murders are absolutely the grandaddy of them all. Jack the Ripper absolutely embodies everything that we currently associate with the concept of a serial killer. However, Cavendish seems to have the notion that the serial killer is a female student of Luna Nova. Certain facts are undisputed. In reality, men commit more violent crime than women, and women are more often victims of violence than perpetrators. Not that sex differences play no part in violent expression. The neurobiological research overwhelmingly suggests that there are sex-specific differences in response to stress, abuse, and other environmental variables—"

"I won't hesitate to destroy that recording, Wangari. Mark my words."

It was nightfall. One of the most bittersweet times of day, as the glorious, iridescent sky slowly darkened. The fiery, protective sun died as it descends, depriving the heavens of its protective light. Over time, it disappears into the horizon; the ever-changing sky slowly becomes a cancerous black color.

The serene moon and a few faithful stars are all that illuminate the darkened world. The beauties of these other celestial bodies are grand in their own right, but unworthy replacements for the blinding bringer of dawn.

Long has night fallen in Diana's world, and she will never see the sun rise again like before. Diana's neck snapped with a force as she turned, hunting for Andrew. He was holding a knife and Diana felt it punch through his neck, a clean cut through and through. He dropped behind her, clawing at his open jugular.

A swoop of panic nearly rooted her to the spot, but someone dragged her awake.

Diana cringed in her sleep, stirring, trashing, her sheets moved as she held on to her pillow. Soft whimpers and cries escaped her soft pink lips. The name of her childhood friend passed her lips a few times mostly in sorrow and misery.

Tears washed her cheeks and stained her silk pillow, soon following an ear-splitting scream before she woke up. She shook panting heavily as her heart raced.

"Andrew," she muttered slightly wiping the sweat off her forehead with the back of her hand. "Just a dream," she panted.

Her long blonde hair was a frizz, reminded her of the chains from the abyss slowly pulling Andrew down in the purple light.

"No, it was a memory." A part of her bitterly reminded. Andrew is gone. It kept repeating as memories of Andrew being pulled into the abyss flowed into her mind.

She held onto her head in terror, her hair flowed from between her fingers. She kept hearing Andrew screaming as he slowly disappeared beneath the earth. She kept remembering what he screamed.

Her heart cringed at the memories. She wanted to scream again but it was caught at her throat, choking her. She shook viciously her face swollen red from tears.

This reminded her of her own mother all over again the day she died.

She cried their names, her voice breaking. "Come back please I don't want to be alone anymore."

Diana felt like she was six all over again. She snuggled into her fragile self, her knees pressed against her chest. "I hate being alone," she muttered burying her head in her knees. "Please."

She doesn't know what face to show when she will meet up with Paul Hanbridge soon.

Diana sobbed quietly until morning broke.

* * *

_**Her entire**_ world seemed to be shaking. Sucy wondered if she was dreaming, her mind still somewhat groggy from sleep.

"Sucy? Sucy wake up! It's time to get ready for school! I hoped you studied for exams because I did!"

Nothing seemed out of place. The world was quiet and sleeping—something, she realized... that she should be doing as well.

The weather outside was something rotten, but that wasn't anything she could really change, could she? Sucy rubbed her eyes, a purely unconscious and reflexive motion before turning around to head back to bed and settle in the warmth of the covers. She barely accomplished a few steps when she heard a familiar voice softly call her name.

"Sucy."

All sleep-borne cobwebs in her half-awake brain vanished instantly as she recognized the intruder. The voice gave it all away: the softness, the way it seemed to take on a life of its own and pull her close before entangling her in its insistence.

Sucy opened her eyes; the first she saw was a mass of brown hair.

"Wait, hold on! You're burning up, Sucy!" Akko yelled with a sheer intensity of a loudspeaker, her hand pressed alternately on her forehead and her neck.

Sucy's attention shifted to a chuckling Loa who sat on the desk next to Sucy's bed. The doll was delighted for once that she no longer needed to hide in cramped spaces.

With Akko's help, Sucy was able to raise herself upright in bed. She looked around at her surroundings, finally mentally awake enough to register information. "I'm... sick?"

With some effort, Sucy swung her legs over the edge of the bed. Akko stood in front of Sucy, and helped hoist her into a standing position, pausing for a moment to make sure Sucy had oriented her balance. She was a little wobbly at first, but quickly gained control of her center of gravity.

"Are you sure you can to go to school? You can't even stand up. Come on, you need to at least change into new clothes, eat your favorite mushroom soup and go back to bed."

"Eh?" was all Sucy could muster. She was looking forward to today the most.

"Yes, you should stay and sleep. I'll tell Professor Ursula about the situation, for sure she can help you take your exams scheduled for today tomorrow or something. I'll get you some flu medicine too!"

Sucy whined at the loss of Akko's touch on hers. She grumbled a few seconds more before addressing the doll. "Why am I sick, Loa?"

"You used a high tier magic spell. Slept late tonight, ramming all your lessons for today's exams, it exhausts your energy. Rain catching you yesterday didn't help..."

"Maybe this is karma because you didn't eat the Belgian chocolate cake I brought you yesterday!"

"Akko there's no correlation to that." Sucy frowned.

"I was just saying. Belgian chocolate cake's good. I fed Diana some last Saturday and she agreed!"

A pang of jealousy rose from somewhere within Sucy didn't want to acknowledge, yet she was here, gripping Akko's arm hard. Her voice seething, "Akko, you're not allowed to spoon feed or even fawn over Cavendish or any other potential suitors you have."

"Sucy," Akko started. She paused, took a deep breath, and finished her sentence, her eyes locked on hers. "Are we dating?"

Sucy's eyes widened even more, so they haven't properly established that. No wonder, Akko just recounted her hang out with Diana without any regard to Sucy's feelings. Beside them, Loa cackled, entertained.

"Yes, yes we are. Aren't we? I confessed and you accepted my feelings and everything."

There. She said it. It was done. Akko was officially hers.

"Well, okay then?" Akko breathed, still looking unsure about everything, but accepting of what Sucy was telling her.

"But, remember that just because I tell you something, doesn't mean that it has to be that way." Sucy quickly reminded her. "Remember how I told you only you can tell yourself how you feel about me? Well, it's true. No matter what anyone might tell you, only you can decide how you truly feel."

Akko nodded slowly, "Yeah."

Inwardly, Sucy cringed at the pathetic attempt to rectify the situation. There was no taking back what she said, but she could at least try to make sure that any feelings Akko might develop for her were genuine, even if the circumstances were uneventful.

She reached over and ruffled Akko's beautiful brown hair before continuing. "I don't want you to like me because I told you to. I want you to like me because you do."

"But, if I'm dating you, then I have to like you, right?" Akko questioned.

"Well, yeah, that's normally how dating goes."

"Then I must like you."

Sucy helped up her hands in a mock gesture of defeat.

Akko stared at Sucy's bed clock before squirming. "Ah, crap. I'm getting late." She then stared at the doll next to them. "Do you think you could make sure she gets to do all of what I said? You're her servant, aren't you? Take care of your master!"

Loa eyed Akko with steel annoyance, unaccustomed to taking orders from anyone but Sucy. Still, she sighed and flew off to the kitchen do as she willed.

Akko leaned and gave Sucy a quick kiss on the cheeks. "I'll see you around after school, darling."

Sucy's heart somersaulted and her toes tingled and her spine rushed with electricity. "I'll be waiting."


	21. Chapter 21

Diana pulled her blazer over her white cotton blouse. She adjusted every loose end and glanced at the clock. It was earlier than her usual running for the day, but it was because she couldn't sleep last night.

She came to a conclusion in those hours when sleep evaded her. She has to save her friends. Or what was left of them. Diana must admit the girls weren't as close to she as she was with Andrew, but the girls had always been there for her and she was for them.

All she knew was that Sucy Manbavaran was attacking her through them and a way for her to save their lives in whatever method Manbavaran use to kill that she couldn't decipher yet. So after her run, she immediately freshened herself up.

Everyone knew Diana's favorite beverage was a cup of hot tea. When her head maid—Anna—brewed the perfect cup of the perfect temperature and perfect flavor, she took a sip. But the sudden bitterness was a flavor she wasn't used too. It was kind of metallic and rusty.

Diana spat it all out on the floor, prompting her aunt and her cousins to let out a shrill cry of shock and utter disgust.

"Diana!" Aunt Daryl slammed the table, standing up from the other long end of the table. "What is the meaning of this?"

Unable to reply for her lungs constricted on an involuntary coughing fit.

"My lady!" Anna grabbed both her shoulders, fearing the future head of the house was poisoned.

"I...am fine." Diana mustered. She grabbed her napkin at the table and proceeded to wipe the nasty flavor off her tongue.

"Diana," her aunt called for her attention. Diana couldn't read the new expression that featured on her face. "Are you perchance, ill?"

"No, I am well, dear aunt," Diana said, slurping some water in three gulps. "I am merely just..." her thoughts strayed towards Andrew.

It didn't help at all. Now she knew why she didn't like the tea. It reminded her of the taste of blood.

"Diana," Aunt Daryl said, her visage contorted back to its original emotion, proud and arrogant. "The death of Andrew Hanbridge must have taken its toll on you. Death is no laughing matter, I don't have the foggiest idea why he would ever kill himself, but I know that I don't want you following him gruesomely because of despair. I advise you to stay at home as soon as your exams are over for the day."

"No," Diana said, earning a smug look from her aunt, but she didn't falter. "I have to go to school."

"Stubborn child, you can't possibly—"

"—if I stay locked up in my room, I might end up like my mother."

The ride towards school was quiet and quick.

The Luna Nova Academy had been her second home for many years, but now it was no longer safe anymore. Diana felt like a criminal who walked into the beautiful campus with a deadly disease to run amok and catch victims. She must save her friends. She must ensure those who are left won't be found dead in a ditch somewhere.

Diana had been expecting the worst case scenario in her head all night. Still, when she saw Hannah and Barbara, her only best friends left in the world, she winced. The girls were in their usual offensive look with a holier than thou attitude. They were in their perfectly groomed uniforms; their skins glowed like a porcelain doll. Diana took a long agonizing breath before walking up to them. Even as poise and expressionless as she tried to be, she still felt on the edge of heartbreak.

Hannah saw her and smiled sweetly. "Hey, how are you feeling?" she asked.

"Diana, you act like you're from outer space," Barbara tried to joke, but her voice had a tone of nervousness in it.

"We should head to the auditorium. The Headmistress called for an assembly." Diana said unemotionally, walking ahead without waiting for them. That was just the beginning.

Hannah and Barbara looked at each other with discomfort at last.

"Did I say something wrong?" Barbara asked Hannah in a whisper as they followed behind.

"I don't know," she replied quietly. "Diana seemed like a different person this morning."

For the next few hours, Diana kept her eyes glued to the desk, quieter than usual. Hannah and Barbara noticed the difference, but they didn't dare to ask. She just wouldn't let them have a chance.

The academy did an assembly at the auditorium telling the student body Andrew committed suicide and began preaching about depression and all that jazz. Diana did not dare to look at Andrew's picture, knowing that he would most certainly be extremely upset wherever he might be, and if there was one thing she could not stand at that moment, was seeing his cold stare which reflected a side of him that she neither wanted nor wished to experience, for she knew that it would only increase the distress in her heart.

Now, Diana had to endure a flood of people wanting to share their condolences and sometimes becoming snoopy in affairs regarding his personal life.

Suicide has always been a mishandled case every so often it appears.

Sometimes Hannah and Barbara would come and sit with her during exams, and in between exams when Avery, Mary, and Blair were with them as they review for their next exam, they ended up irritating her with their idle chatter instead of actually focusing on their works.  
The girls along with Mary and Blair were still left in the dark about Avery's condition. Diana hated to be the one to break it to them. So for now, she opted to stay quiet, also for the investigation's sake.

During all this, Diana kept a vigilant lookout for Sucy Manbavaran but the Filipino seemed out of sight.

When they entered the Student Council Room after exams, Hannah and Barbara got even more tongue-tied about her sudden coldness and mute. She was usually a reserved person, but today was a lot worse than yesterday.

It was going well until Hannah's system couldn't bear it any longer, she exploded. "That's it, Diana!" she yelled. "You've been acting so weird today. What's wrong with you?"

Barbara tucked the edge of her sleeve to calm her.

"Is it because of Andrew's death?" Hannah stirred up again.

Diana looked up with her best stony face. She exhaled and decided that it was time to face the truth. "I have something to tell you."

"Okay good, we have been waiting for you to open up," Hannah said.

"We cannot continue being friends anymore," Diana told them flatly. Shock shone brightly from the girls' eyes. Barbara opened her mouth to speak, but there was no word coming out.

"What?" Hannah managed to ask. "You're kidding, right?"

"No, I'm not."

"What are you talking about?" she still said blankly, as if she didn't believe her own ears.

"I sincerely thought there was nothing wrong with your hearing, Hannah."

"Listen, Diana," Barbara attempted to salvage everything. "If this is about Andrew and Frank—"

"Stop it, Barbara!" Diana sneered.

Barbara stared back in shock, almost panicking under her gaze. Diana was certain that they would never forget this. But to ensure the girls' safety from herself, she had no choice.

"Diana we know you're hurt! The stress, the exams, our friends' deaths, and everyone's awful whispers are getting to you."

"No! You don't understand," Diana slammed her hands on the table. "It's not them!"

"Then tell me why just out of the blue you don't want to be with us?" Barbara rose from her chair and came toward her.

Diana quickly held her palm up to stop her. "Just stay away from me, you two!"

"Diana, you can't just snap at us like that!" Hannah stepped in, "Tell us what the bloody hell is going on!" Her face got all tensed. Her hazel eyes pierced at Diana.

She stared back without blinking. "Fine, you want to hear a reason? Actually, I have many." Diana said, knowing that if she had to lie to them, she had to make a bigger lie and also mean it. "You two are no different from Thomas and his group of friends. You mock people while you have nothing to prove but the fact that you cling to my side because of my family name. So please, leave me alone. I am better off on my own anyway. Thank for the companionship and everything, but sorry, I am not your kind."

"Oh my god," Barbara's little voice cracked with anger. Her face was pale and her bright teal eyes got all teary, but Diana cannot back down.

"Alright, we do admit, we are sometimes like stuck-up little bitches, but I never knew you feel that way about us, Diana," Hannah spoke again, and she was breathing hard. "I thought we've shown you that we genuinely care about you. Not because of your family name."

"We thought... you cared about us too." Barbara's eyes stung. "But we were wrong. So wrong."

And just like that, Diana turned her back at them before they could see her face crumpled in pain. As Diana started walking away, she could hear Barbara burst into a sob. Hannah kept mumbling to herself, "I can't believe this."

* * *

 _ **She could**_ feel Amanda O'Neill's eyes following her every time they were in the same room, which was odd because she even followed Diana to the library. After the disaster of Andrew's death spreading like wildfire just this morning, Diana had quickly learned to take refuge between the rows of book-laden shelves, protecting herself from potential assailants.

Diana had to thank the librarian's no-nonsense attitude, and that most of the students of Luna Nova are afraid of earning the wrath of the librarian and any ensuing punishment by causing a disturbance. Diana, naturally, spent a great deal of her time there, researching and writing her papers for class.

No one even dared to approach Diana in the library, no one except for the American redhead. Diana dutifully ignored her, determined not to show any kind of curiosity or receptiveness to the enigmatic girl. The librarian had to chase Amanda O'Neill out of the room and Diana hoped that would be the last attempt the delinquent would make towards her.

She was lucky until somebody placed a bottle of oil on her table. Diana looked up to meet blue eyes behind huge glasses.

"Please take this," the orange-haired girl said, "Commiserations for your bereavement."

Diana gripped her pen tighter. "Thank you but I do not need any ointment.

The girl merely scrutinized her under her willful gaze. "Trust me; you need it. Like illness, sadness is which cannot be cured by modern medicine. It causes misfortune to love ones emotionally or mentally, lost of mental focus, lack of sleep, lost to appetite, sudden accidents, and other unexplained cases."

They merely exchanged looks.

She fixed her glasses as she added. "My grandmother recommends."

Diana grabbed the bottle and inspected it. It has a scent of coconut and it appeared to be hand brewed. "Medicinal oil concocted from coconut, is it not? What is it called?"

"My grandmother told me it's called _Lana_ by one of the regions somewhere in South East Asia and you rub it on your body."

Diana nodded. "Inform your grandmother my gratitude."

She shook her head. "You tell her yourself, Miss Cavendish."

"Why? Who is your grandmother?"

"Headmistress Holbrook," the girl said, "from my mother's side."

"Lotte Jansson?"

"You have people watching over you, Miss Cavendish." Lotte smiled. "Not necessarily just people."

Diana had observed her all throughout their conversation. She had made a fairly pertinent first impression about the young woman. She was clever, and like her grandmother, have an old soul. She also possessed a kind and sensitive heart that allowed her to see the world in a delightful manner.

"See you around." She said as she drifted away.

The coconut ointment still rested on her palm, and as she watched it glittering in the purple light of the morning from the nearby window, she wondered why Headmistress Holbrook gave it to her.

When she thought she would finally be at peace her stomach grumbled. Diana cursed under her breath before searching her surroundings. No one was around; at least O'Neill is gone. Now she found a chance to retrieve some meal to satisfy her hunger.

Returning the books back to their shelves, Diana quickened her pace towards the cafeteria. At least she needed to go get some lunch fast and eat somewhere solitary.

Diana was focused so much on her task that when someone emerged from the hallway; they almost collided to each other.

"Oh, Diana Cavendish, just the girl I wanted to see."

Diana had to regain her footing before looking up. A blue-eyed face of Louis Blackwell slid into her vision. The bloke gave Diana a grin, and his teeth may as well have been icicles for how cold it was.

"What do you want?" her voice suddenly got a lot deeper, in an attempt to mirror his austere aura.

"Andrew must really have it hard for you, doesn't he?" he simpered, chuckling and the sound grated Diana's already stretched nerves.

"I beg your pardon?"

"You are very cruel, you know that Miss Cavendish? It was blatantly obvious why Andrew killed himself. You should be ashamed of yourself."

Diana's eyes narrowed. "Y-you know?"

"Let's get to the point, shall we?" Blackwell smiled; the expression was saccharine, like tea laced with arsenic. "I didn't believe my eyes when I saw you depart from Frank's funeral just so you can go on a date."

"What?"

"You see, there are whispers, Miss Cavendish, whispers that the House of Cavendish is up to something with the Houses of families with eligible bachelors. Whispers that you're trying to initiate something revolutionary, initiate into some group that you've supposedly been forming. Some are even saying you've wrapped Frank and Andrew under your vile spell!"

That was the first time Diana heard of it.

"They're all ridiculous, of course; but that doesn't matter, does it, Cavendish? Because once the rumor mill in this place starts churning, whispers spread like Greek fire, and they're just as hard to control, to rein in. There's a fragile peace in place at the moment. And as things currently stand, you, my dear—you are a threat to that peace."

Diana's thoughts started swirling. Perhaps it was the fatigue and stress that made her stop connecting all the dots of what the blond was telling her.

"So, here's how this is going to go." The words were said lowly, all false humor discarded. The simpering, the show of cordiality, they had disappeared in the bat of an eyelid. Left in their place was the icy ruthlessness that Diana knew was the true face of Louis Blackwell. "Agree to combine both our family's assets and I will never speak a word of how you drove Andrew to suicide because of your ruthlessness."

Diana's brain short-circuited momentarily. Her mouth unhinged. Never in her life had she heard something so blatantly dim-witted. She glared at him. Louis Blackwell doesn't have enough skill or brainpower to be able to hoodwink the likes of her.

"Pardon?" she scoffed. "Is this your way of finding better associations in the political room?"

Blackwell grinned, believing he's still at the upper hand. "You are in no position to defy me or to act all innocent. It was opaque as crystal that Andrew's very much in love with you but you broke his heart into tiny little pieces when you went on a date with that Eastern transferee student."

"Oh?" Diana taunted him, crossing her arms. "Care to elaborate on that?"

"I saw you—at a gothic looking secondhand store in an attempt to hide your trysts. I never knew you were into women, Miss Cavendish. I must say, you truly are the most unique girl I've ever chanced upon meeting."

"Blackwell, with all due respect, your attempt to use words as intimidation falls short on your wrong conclusion about my relations with Andrew and Atsuko Kagari."

"You're from a long and famous bloodline, Diana Cavendish. Surely you are aware of how controversial it is when your aunt and the other Houses would learn that you favored women over men. So if you intend to not start a civil war in your home, you will do as I say."

"This is not how you pursue a woman, Blackwell." Diana hissed. "At this point, I will opt to choose another over your courtship."

Blackwell's nose flared, losing his cool at the botched effort to intimidate her. "I must say... the dalliance between you and this eastern girl. It's beneath you."

"And what how do you know you fare at the ways of romance, Blackwell?"

"Easy, she is nowhere near your league. How much the LNN or even the UKN would love to hear that Miss Cavendish and a lowly common girl from another foreign country are involved romantically."

"First of all, you have no proof, only assumptions. You know nothing of me or what I am going through. Second, do you really think no one from outside your little reformist group would know you are its leader? And lastly; you are worst than what Wangari used to be at spreading lies."

"I beg your pardon?"

"At least Wangari is aware the news she spread before were all lies. You, however? You are merely pathetic."

In response, Blackwell balled his hands into a fist and punched Diana squarely in the jaw, his anger flaring up with surprising intensity.

Taken aback by Blackwell's outburst, Diana silenced herself from making any more comments. Her eyes widening in surprise, and then acknowledging the revelation of the empty corridor asides from them, Diana thought fast. She wouldn't fare with someone bigger than her in a fight. Now she wished she took all those defense classes Detective Inspector pestered her with two years ago.

Louis Blackwell appeared to be a cowardly son who only used his family name to enforce authority within everyone in the academy. He would back out from a fight he knew he couldn't win and would sometimes resort to cheating whenever he was playing cards or settling fights.  
But this... this was something totally different.  
This was serious.

"I can't believe what you did, you bastard." Diana spat out.

"Oh yeah?" Blackwell cornered her into the small space of two adjacent walls. "No one's going to believe you, anyway. Everyone thinks you're the one who pushed Andrew to his demise! Or perhaps you were the one who one who staged the murder scene. No suicidal man alive would do such extravagant lengths just to kill himself. And besides, I have my acquaintances in the little reformist group you were talking about. They're a little rough, but they are also wonderfully loyal, and that rather makes up for it if you ask me. I can make up some proofs and witnesses that you assaulted me instead."

Diana feared for her safety, wrapping her arms around herself. She was contemplating kicking him in his nether regions when all of a sudden a blur swung through the air, hitting Louis Blackwell right to his head.

His body flew sideways like a ragdoll. It was a massive concussion, although not fatal. Diana slumped down, Amanda O'Neill kneeled right beside her with an American baseball bat she rested on her shoulder.

"I am your personal flying squad, vroom vroom motherfucker!"

Diana gaped at the sight of an unconscious bloke on the ground and the offensive object for sport at the redhead's hand. She recollected her thoughts and stared at her with a straight face. "You have detention for a week, Miss O'Neill."

"What? Oh come on, don't give me that crap! Aren't you glad I saved you from homophobes?" Amanda said, smearing her nose with her thumb like a rugged boy. She grabbed her phone and called someone. "Hey, dude! I got some news for you. Come to my location. You have me on GPS right?"

Diana swiftly stood on her feet, and smoothed her skirt to rid it of creases and dust. She began walking the other way, wishing the American won't be able to see her brave façade falter, at least for a little while. She decided she will have to skip lunch and perhaps notify a professor of harassment and the matron at the infirmary of an injury.

"Yo Cavendish!" the redhead followed. "I was looking for a chance to talk to you!"

Diana sighed. It was only Monday and she knew her bad luck won't stop coming. "Yes?"

The delinquent got a cocky sneer on her face, "Is it just me or are you cursed?"

Diana showed her best sneer. "Did you come here to gloat?"

"Not really," she grinned. "But think about it. That Kinsley kid had a crush on you and he's dead. Frank also had a crush on you—dead. Andrew gives you flowers—dead. This mop blond dude was harassing you and he received a baseball bat to the noggin."

"Leave me alone. O'Neill." Diana said, walking past her. She better had to find Professor Cruz—real name Croix Meridies about Blackwell's harassment on her for she was inclined to believe her version of events.

"Is that why you pushed your friends away too? I saw the breakup. It was really ugly and messy."

Diana had no comment on that.

"So, tell me." She swooped around. "What does a high school detective like you do? Stir up troubles?"

"I am a servant of truth and I investigate murders."

The redhead raised a questioning eyebrow before shrugging. "So it's just stirring trouble in the name of justice or whatever yeah? Count me in."

"Excuse me?"

"Come on, you need a Watson to your Sherlock. Everybody knows that."

A list of things to say sprung up in her mind, though she chose to say something else. "Why is everyone adamant on following the tropes in books?"

"Who says anything about books? I've watched movies. But come on, I know you're so fucking fed up with all of this shit. Do you know some people were talking behind your back despite telling you they are sorry for Andrew's death? What a bunch of cunts!"

It stung. The truth stung. Diana knew what was going on behind her back anyway. Anyone knew how devastated she is behind all that thick makeup. Everyone had theories about why Andrew apparently killed himself. None of it was pretty and it mostly involved her.

"Please, O'Neill, language."

"There was really no better way of putting it than that, you know."

"O'Neill, please if this is your way of consoling me—"

"I'm not consoling you, I'm telling you, I want in. It's actually getting boring around here. And I know you're doing something prohibited among the rest of us. I'm not a moron who believes Andrew Hanbridge killed himself. I also know you're looking for the killer from the recent murders, right?"

Diana chastised herself for assuming Amanda O'Neil wasn't observant enough.

"You have to persist it, don't you think?"

"Persistence with the killer is a dangerous game," Diana said.

"Why would you say so?"

"Perhaps my persistence is the reason why Frank and Andrew are now dead," Diana said.

They both resorted to silence.

It didn't last long for sounds of people running in the hallway came. Wangari and her troops of LNN members spread at the scene like forensics. Joanna dutifully photographing an unconscious Blackwell and Kimberly writing notes as Wangari started her interview with Amanda and Diana.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There was a headcanon a year ago swirling around that Headmistress Holbrook is Lotte's maternal grandmother. And I'm fond of it myself so I incorporated it here in this au.


	22. Chapter 22

Crashing her lips against Akko's, Sucy almost threw her against one of the walls of the room.

"Sucy..." Akko whined, opening her eyes to look at her with hunger.

It was enough to make Sucy lose control. She captured her lips, causing Akko to let out a moan.

Grinning into the kiss, Sucy moved her hands to unclasp Akko's bra from behind and tugging it along with her shirt up and over the Akko's head, revealing the most delectable looking expanse of skin Sucy had ever laid eyes on. Dragging her fingernails from Akko's hips up to her newly exposed breasts, she let out a pleased hum.

"See, now this isn't really fair," Akko quipped, tugging Sucy's dress pajamas. "You're still completely covered and I'm..." she waved a hand over her naked torso.

Sucy silenced her, placing a finger against her lips, then, reaching up to brush a stray lock of brown hair from her beloved's face. She leaned down to cover Akko's body with her own.

Her response was explosive.

The feeling of Akko's front pressed against hers was maddening. Akko involuntarily slammed her eyes shut and arched upwards at the contact, groaning loudly before the noise was swallowed when Sucy kissed her again.

Unable to do much but writhe beneath the body on top of her, Sucy tried to focus on reciprocating the sheer amount of pleasure she was receiving.

Placing her hands on Akko's waist, she hungrily kissed the other girl, eventually sliding her hands down and over the Akko's rear. Grasping it firmly, she pushed her hips down until they collided with her own, and stars exploded behind her eyelids.

Sucy groaned as she tore her lips away from Akko's. She moved to kiss her beloved's neck, then her collarbone, until she was bare inches from her breasts.

"Please... Sucy," Akko whined, desperate for the Sucy's rough tongue to continue its descent.

Sucy grinned wickedly, bringing an arm down from beside Akko's head, trailing a fingertip between her breasts down over her stomach, until it was running along the waistband of Akko's shorts that she had neglected to remove. Her solution was to simply thrust her hand down the front of the article of clothing and press her fingers into the slick wetness she found. She had never felt like she was losing control before. Nothing compared to the absolute ecstasy that she was touching Akko right there.

Akko was unable to form proper words, but Sucy didn't need any encouragement. Sliding a digit in tiny circles around a hard nub, Akko moved her lips to Sucy's shoulder, biting into it as Sucy slid slightly to her left, allowing herself better access to Akko's center, whilst also finding a delicious friction against her beloved's thigh.

Stroking her softly, Sucy heard her moan into her shoulder. With the last thread of sanity she possessed, Sucy plunged a digit inside her and was rewarded with a noise that she could only describe as one of pure bliss.

Akko cried as Sucy gripped her beloved's waist with her free hand, her short nails leaving crescent-shaped marks on the girl's fair skin. Both now covered in a thin sheen of sweat, the pair panted and slid against each other, trying to find the rhythm they so desperately needed to push them over the edge.

"I love you, Lotte." She whispered.

In the place of long brown hair, her partner had short orange hair instead. Sucy watched in terror as her beloved's red eyes turned into blue, the clear skin changed into ones with tiny cute freckles.

The new girl wrapped her arms around Sucy's neck, locking her in her grip. "I love you too, Sucy."

And then Sucy snapped wide awake in the midst of the dream. She was sweating and gasping for air. It felt so real; she thought she could no longer escape it. The dream where Akko turned into the Finnish girl was so vivid in her mind. Each wave of pleasure wracked her like loose sparks of electric ecstasy.

The number of guilt settled on her stomach.

In an effort to remove the horror-filled revelation, she tried to get some work done in her room, studying for her exams, but her mind couldn't seem to settle. She tried writing an essay, she tried studying her ancestral book of spells, she tried everything, but no matter what she did, she just kept seeing the sweet smile on Lotte's face. She even tried changing it with the concerned look on Akko's face just this morning.

She clenched her teeth, micro-analyzing the matters of her heart over and over again.

Sucy flipped a page of one of her textbooks and, after her third fruitless attempt to absorb any of what she was reading, violently slammed the tome shut and hurled it at the wall. It hit the wall with a loud smack and thudded to the floor as Sucy buried her face in a pillow and screamed.

" _What's going on with you?"_ Loa asked as it floated inside the room. The hospitalized Canadian girl stood beside her in a daze. She was carrying a plastic bag of oranges. _"You threw the book to the wall as you did to me before. Did your homework scare you?"_

"I can't stop seeing her face!"

" _Your girl?"_ Loa offered.

"No, not her," Sucy grumbled, "The other one—Lotte Jansson."

The doll chuckled. _"I told you she was messing with your head."_

Sucy closed her eyes and lifted her head up into the ceiling. She let out a loud exhale then looked at Loa again. "Please stop adding strain to me with your nonsense. The girl is incredibly nice and beautiful. It's not magic or spells that drew me to her—ACK!" she gasped when the fruits were thrown her way. Sucy was forced to acknowledge the girl wearing white garments.

"Status report?"

In a puppet-like trance, the girl handed her a golden hair strand.

"Good girl!" Sucy received the damned hair, clutching on it hard to make sure it was real. "Well, since I'm bored might as well have fun."

" _You need to eat that fruit first,"_ Loa said. _"Or need I remind you this purple haired girl is still under your spell every once in a while."_

"—and the spell gets its energy from my physical health," Sucy said, peeling the fruit; she wished she could smell the citrus scent wafting through the air than having a stuffy nose. "I also didn't think that a simple invisibility incantation to get her to sneak here would be that damaging to my immune system."

" _You call it simple, Sucy, but it is undecipherable by your grandmother during her time."_

Sucy motioned for her malevolent doll to come closer and Loa yielded to her command. "Do you have any more to report to me?"

"Professor Cruz is an undercover Detective Inspector of Scotland Yard. She's the one from the Criminal Investigation Division's handling your case. She wasn't keen on collaborating with Diana, but now she is."

Sucy looked skyward, focusing on the color of her ceiling. Even though they were a little faded, they melted into a lovely color of pure chaos. Her heartbeat thrummed, rising into an unsteady rhythm. Sucy clenched a fist, remembering what Cavendish told her. The Blytonbury Police was calling in the Yard.

" _It seems the blonde Brit isn't your only problem now,"_ Loa said. _"You're gaining enemies from left to right, Sucy. Should I be making a list of people who want you behind bars?"_

"You're right," Sucy said, her voice sounded oddly strangled. Controlling her temper she mulled it all over. "I knew there was something fishy about the new professor in a new curriculum. The biggest problem is, if I kill her, they would just send in another detective to work on my case."

" _Am I hearing what I think I'm hearing from your thoughts, Sucy?"_

Sucy flashed a smile; her eyes seemed to glow in the light. "I think it's time we return poor Avery back to her hospital room and let her do what she's best at—gathering gossips while we continue our dubious schemes."

* * *

 _ **After the**_ uneventful interview, Wangari promised she would bring Blackwell to the infirmary and she would also take his version of events. Noting specifically she only wanted to do it for ethical reasons since she knew from the evidence on Diana's jaw that she was a victim.

"Already have lunch?" Amanda asked.

Diana didn't get a wink of sleep last night. Hunger is the last thing on her mind right now. "I'm not that hungry anymore." She frowned.

"Diana, you really need to eat." Amanda pointed the bat at her.

"Please stash that away."

For a moment, Diana cast her eyes downward and away from Amanda, almost as if she was trying to conceal some kind of disappointment and disapproval within. Amanda leaned over gingerly and gave Diana a small pat on the shoulder, a reassurance of some sort.

Chewing on her lower lip, now unsure of herself, she hesitated a few seconds before responding, making an almost conscious effort to avoid her green eyes. "I'm sorry Amanda. I've just been…preoccupied, I guess."

"Wow, I can't believe it." Her jaw unhinged.

"Can't believe what?" Diana echoed.

"You just referred to me by my first name!" A cheer rose from her belly. "That's it! I've unlocked your friendship! This is an achievement!"

Diana crossed her arms, adapting a haughty appearance. "I advise you to not get used to it."

"Oh come on!" Amanda wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Diana had to straighten her spine because the redhead placed all her weight on her. "This calls for a celebration! Come on, whatever you want to do, my treat! And since school is stressing you out, I can help you skip classes or something."

Diana removed Amanda's arms around her and hissed. "Absolutely not! I am used to the stresses of life, I'm a Cavendish!"

"Well gee okay, British girl," Amanda said placing the bat's end at the ground, leaning on top of the handle. "There are still a few minutes to spare before next class so I suggest you better start eating or I will have to shove something down your throat.

Diana sighed, surrendering. "Fine."

After returning Amanda's bat on her locker, they headed towards the cafeteria and thankfully there were only a few students left there. Those who inched towards them, Amanda chased away.

Amanda volunteered to get their food while Diana found them a table to their liking. Diana glanced around, her eyes landing on a solitary Atsuko Kagari. She was munching on some chips while absorbed in reading something on her phone.

There were no signs of Sucy Manbavaran which is mysterious.

Diana approached her. Akko didn't seem to register her presence so she had to clear her throat. But even then, the Japanese girl didn't stir. Diana couldn't help herself from _stopping on looking at Akko's phone. The first few words she came upon were:_

_...there was a belief that each individual had more than one soul. Among the Bagobo tribe from the Philippines, each person had a right-hand soul (the good side of the individual and went to heaven after death) and a left-hand soul (the evil in each person and at death it went either to the underworld or stayed on earth to vex the living)._

"Oh my god!" Amanda screamed from behind her. "Are you invading her privacy?"

Diana was shaken, but she managed to muster up a lie. "It's not my place to read personal correspondence."

"Eh, and here I thought you've become snoopier." Amanda carried both trays while addressing the brunette, already sitting next to her. "Hey Akko, where's Sucy?"

"Geh!" Akko's phone slipped through her fingers and she had to do a short montage before she caught it back. "Amanda!"

Akko hadn't given her any answers but Amanda laid their trays on the table and sat on a chair next to her.

"Oh, you know each other?" Diana asked.

"Yes, we do," Amanda said, putting ketchup on her burger. "We're best of friends. Birds of the same feather flock together."

Diana helped herself with the other seat next to the Japanese girl. "Akko, do you know that Miss O'Neill's a bit of a light-fingered?"

"You mean she has springy hands?"

"I think she meant I'm your everyday kleptomaniac," Amanda said after taking a bite. "Hey, you should continue calling me by my first name you know! No take backs!"

"Oh, right she is," Akko grumbled. "Speaking of stealing things, please return that motorcycle named Shooting Star you stole from the junk shop. They all think I did it. I don't want to give Professor Ursula more trouble than I'm already worth."

"Yeah yeah, remind me in two days."

"AMANDA!"

Diana let out a little giggle before her face fell again. She had no right to be laughing when she did cause two deaths and one accident now.

"Hey!" Amanda threw a chip at her direction. "No more sulking and brooding like a YA hero in a book! Eat!"

Diana eyed her meal and skipped her tea. She carefully took a spoonful of the porridge Amanda specifically ordered from the cafeteria for her and winced at how bland it tasted. She reached for the salt packet that came with her meal and mixed three small bags into her meal.

Amanda looked at her incredulously.

"But I must say I'm equally curious, Akko." Diana started, loving the taste of the porridge's saltiness in her mouth. "Where is Miss Manbavaran anyway?"

"Oh," Akko gulped. "She's actually back at her flat with the flu. It was weird because usually, I'm the first who gets sick."

Diana had to stare at Akko's eyes and body language. A potential serial killer getting the flu after her crime was laughable and almost unheard of; especially if that possible murderer is a student on her first day of exams. But Akko wasn't lying or perhaps she believed Manbavaran to be. She must find out the truth.

* * *

 _ **The rest**_ of the exams for today went by with a blur and Diana accompanied Professor Ursula, helping her carry some test papers she gathered from all her classes towards her desk at the faculty room.

"Thank you very much for helping me, Diana."

"Please professor," she said at the woman holding far more stacks of papers than her. "There is no need to be gushy about this. You deserve basic kindness."

"Ah indeed," the professor's clumsy and timid nature was caused by being younger than most of her faculty peers as Professor Finnelan so eloquently put. But as Diana observed the woman, she can tell she was trying so hard to hide a certain habit.

They paced the corridors until they reached the faculty room.

"Oh! You can put them on my table." Professor Ursula instructed as she began segregating the old student notebooks in her bins according to class.

Diana sighed at the disorganized stacks of student's notes and papers on the French woman's table and simply placed what she carried on the wooden surface. Professor Ursula was teaching a huge amount of Literature class so it was no doubt that her working space would be cluttered with written essays and printed analysis.

A stray gush of wind from the open window made a mess of the papers on Professor Ursula's table.

"Oh my!" Professor Ursula jumped to the floor and picked them all up.

Watching her was pitiful so Diana helped organize the ones at the table first. Her eye caught a certain jaunty flourish of lines and silently gasped when she read the name of the owner. It was Sucy Manbavaran's quiz paper from last week—her penmanship presented itself to Diana in all of its glory.

She seized the paper and swiftly pocketed them.

When the entire debacle was over, Diana's heart was leaping from her chest and itched to be anywhere but there. This was the first time she stole something from a professor and it clearly distressed her more than ever. She excused herself from the Professors who wished her well and stepped out of the room.

"Hey Princess, are you still going to ignore me?" Amanda caught her by the elbow. She was just dismissed by Professor Finnelan who reprimanded her and it seemed she hurried herself to catch her.

Diana yanked her arm free, but Amanda's grip on her was firm.

"Come on, talk to me or I'll tell on you."

Diana blinked, fearing that the American might have seen her take something from the Professor's table.

"Oh yeah, I saw what you did you sneaky little bitch." Amanda jeered, "Oh how cute to see you get anxious just from a small heist. Is it a part of the investigation?"

Diana squeezed her thumb and index fingers to her eyelids as her headache returned. "As I had said before, learning to see the puzzle in everything has its costs. It is a lonely way to live."

"Is it though? Maybe it's just the result of character. To me, it sounds like an adventure."

"Oh please, you are quite naïve. People and all their deceits, illusions, and actions inform everything that they do tend to be the most fascinating puzzles of all and if you did solve someone, they become boring and in the end, you lose a friend or gain enemies."

Amanda asked. "Is that why you had a falling out with your minions?"

Diana scoffed. "Hannah and Barbara are not my minions! They are... were my friends."

"Are you sure? It doesn't look that way from an outsider's view."

"Don't be predictable, Amanda. Your futile attempts to make me feel worse than I already do are all for naught."

"Challenge me, then." Amanda offered. "And if I pass the test, I should be able to come along with your investigation, and you'll have to tell me why you stole somebody's paper back there."

Diana let out a long sigh. "Alright, if you ever did pass, you are more than welcome to join me. There are, however, some details I want to check at first."

"Bring it."

"Are you friends with Sucy Manbavaran?"

"Yeah, I mean... we hang out with the same circle of friends."

"Essentially you are not that close."

"I mean... yeah. It's hard to crack that one's noggin unlike you." Amanda sniggered.

"Here's what I want you to do." Diana inched closer to the redhead's ears and murmured. "Go check if Sucy Manbavaran is really sick."

Amanda gawked at her in disbelief. "Are you messing with me?"

"To be able to search out clues in a murder investigation, you have to train yourself through secretly collecting and reports information on the activities, movements, and plans of your friends and to see if they are lying or not."

Amanda's eyes went from skepticism to determination. "So you had a hint that Akko lied?"

"Akko didn't lie," Diana said, resolve unwavering. "Sucy Manbavaran on the other hand..."

"Oh do I smell a hint of drama?" Amanda asked. Diana sent her a stare that was enough of a reprimand because the American stopped her banters. "So Sucy... you don't trust her?"

"Akko trusts her. It would be unwise to question her judgment without substantial evidence."

"I get that Sucy could give off the vibe of deviousness, but why? How's it important?"

"I will tell you once you pass your test. If you uncover such evidence that Manbavaran is anything but sick, bring it directly to me."

"Alright! Leave it to me!"

And with that, Amanda turned and walked away, and Diana had no choice but to listen to her echoing footsteps.

Diana headed towards the Student Council room to resume her duties. She also wanted to get started with next semester's work as well. Since a new short election was coming up and a lot of students were itching to run for Vice President.

She had evaded a lot of people at the hallways and she was doing just fine until someone seized her elbow and yanked her into a nearby broom closet. Somebody closed the door behind them and locked it, plunging the pair of them into total darkness.

Within seconds, her assailant and Diana conjured their phone lights so that they didn't have to have their conversation in the dark.

"Akko?" her voice went an octave higher.

Akko quickly sealed off Diana's mouth with her palm. Diana's breath caught in surprise as Akko took a step into her personal space, their bodies only an inch or so apart. The Japanese seemed to peer into Diana's eyes and Diana couldn't help but stare at Diana's in return. Red like lava, her irises seem to burn like embers in the soft, white light of their only source of light. They were enigmatic _._ Diana thought to herself, entranced and exasperated with herself all at once.

"Quiet, I'm sorry about this. But can I ask you a favor?"

Diana was still captivated by the color of her eyes gleamed brightly in the dark. When her fingers left Diana's lips, those eyes dimmed down a little.

"It depends on my capabilities, Akko. What seems to be the predicament?" she said trying to deflect Akko's attention from her flushed cheeks.

"I want you to listen very carefully, and remember every word I say." Akko paused, hesitating as she scanned the room and stared at the walls as if they were transparent, and through them, she could see into all the rooms of this academy. "Could you accompany me somewhere right now? Professor Ursula's preoccupied with school stuff since all the other older Professors are making her do more work."

Diana considered the notion. She couldn't help her when there are other important matters to attend to. But it seems that Akko's entire life is in jeopardy if she won't help.

"Why of course, Akko," Diana said. Her rational thoughts and emotional heart weren't making the same decisions. "Where are we heading off to?"

"First I need you to swear to me you won't tell anyone about this."

This was the first time Diana saw Akko with a particular steel strength in the way she presented herself. Diana understood the severity of the situation. "I swear."

"Great, because I need to be invisible and go to a cathedral, but there's no one else out here I can trust."

There was a long stretching silence. Diana looked at Akko in disbelief.

"Why?"

Akko offered this straw of cheer with a weak and nervously fluttering smile that did not succeed in releasing Diana from doubts which Akko's demeanor and her information had pitched her into. Diana didn't like the way Akko's eyes skipped guiltily away when she tried to catch them.

"Just for... you know... reasons." She said, hiding something.


	23. Chapter 23

Diana furrowed her eyebrow at the unexplainable circumstances on this day. After Akko pulled her into janitor's closet, Diana called her chauffeur to drive them towards the cathedral from the neighboring town.

Perhaps, Diana would start with the elections work tomorrow once Andrew's death would become old news. She must not forget to focus on reviewing for her other exams and in between, she could work on analyzing Sucy Manbavaran's penmanship.

When the car arrived, Akko had to get into the car discreetly as possible. She still looked conspicuous and Diana refrained so hard not to strangle her with the seatbelt. Luckily for Akko, they arrived at church none too soon.

Akko brought two five litter water bottles placed for dispensing machine at the entrance of the church.

"Lady Cavendish?" A priest in his late thirties came to them after he was called by the church's servants. "It's been so long since I saw you. Is it an urgent confession you're after?"

"No, thank you," Diana said, noticing a small gold ring rested around the priest's finger, decorated with three small red rubies—barely visible to the naked eye. "My sins are too many and varied to mention, and frankly I intend to continue sinning so I won't waste your time. It's my friend who needs to speak with you privately."

The priest stared at Akko, waiting for her to start.

"Father, I'm looking for something called Agua... uhh Bendita? Professor Ursula told me to you are able to help."

"Oh, of course," a ghost of a smile appeared on his lips. "What packaging would you want it, my child?"

"Refill it here!" Akko said as the priest grabbed both bottles motioned for them to follow them on the church's kitchen.

"Akko," Diana blanched. "Did you merely want a refill of blessed mineral water?"

"Shh! You are sworn to secrecy to never speak about this!"

"Oh, I won't," Diana said. "The affairs of the church and how they collect their funds from the people are in their own accord. The enigma of your actions today proves to be too much for me. Is it too much to ask why?"

Akko's eyes widen slightly before she gained control of her facial muscles to steel herself into a more neutral expression. Slowly and deliberately, she began to answer the question with another question. "Diana, is it just me or do you hate the church as much as Sucy?"

"She hates the church as well?"

"She was brought up in a strange orphanage." Akko began but in a soft voice, in order not to offend anyone who might be listening. "And the people who reside there are even stranger—not the children, but the nuns and priests. Sucy told me that they are fanatically religious."

"To believe in God is a good thing, a right thing," Diana said. "But when you reinforce your belief with words you take from the Old Testament that you seek out, and interpret in the ways that suit your needs best; that is hypocrisy, and is that exactly what that orphanage does?"

"Yes," Akko said, her eyes mirroring a shared sorrow. "There was this old man in a nearby estate that was dying, but every Sunday he is carried into the church either in his wheelchair, and he donates a share of his yearly income, to the church. So naturally, he is very welcomed. He paid to have the orphanage built, he bought all the stained-glass windows, bought all the blocks and cement, he controls the minister and his sermons, for he is paving his way to heaven with gold, and if St. Peter can be bribed; he will surely gain entrance. In that church, he is treated like a god himself, or a living saint. And then he comes home, feeling completely justified in doing anything he wants, because he has done his duty, and paid his way, and therefore he is safe from hell."

Diana's eyes widened, spellbound.

"When Sucy was growing up. They were literally forced to go to church. Even if they were sick enough to stay in bed. Religion was rammed down their throats. Be good, be good, and be good. That's all they ever heard. Every day, normal pleasures that were right for other people were made sinful for them. Sucy and the other children were not allowed to go swimming, for that meant wearing bathing suits and exposing most of their bodies. They were forbidden card games or any sort of game that implied gambling. They weren't allowed to go to dances, for that meant their bodies might be pressed close to that of the other sex. They weren't allowed to share a bed even if they are of the same gender and were ordered to control their thoughts, to keep them off lusting, sinful subjects for they said the thought was as evil as the deed. Oh, I could go on and on about all they were forbidden to do. It seemed everything that was fun and exciting was sinful to them."

Diana's jaw muscles tightened. To think that were more shady deals going on in that orphanage that she and Avery weren't able to uncover. She was glad she was able to retrieve new information from a source close to the person.

To think that Sucy Manbavaran endured such a controlled environment, and there is something in the young that rebels when life is made too strict. Making them want to do most of all the things denied to them. The orphanage, in seeking to make their children into living angels, only succeeded in making them worse than they would have been otherwise.

* * *

  _ **Someone was**_ calling her name. Sucy struggled to open her eyes, but the darkness was seductively inviting.

With a good amount of effort, Sucy opened her eyes and looked into intense red ones. She blinked.

"Darling?" Akko was staring down at her with a blank look on her features.

She swallowed and attempted to speak, but her throat was painfully dry. Akko produced a glass of ice cold water from somewhere behind her, and slowly proceeded to pour the refreshing liquid into Sucy's mouth, pausing every once in a while to let her swallow. Sucy settled back into the rather comfortable bed she found herself reclined in, a feeling of well-being creeping through her. She cleared her throat and spoke.

"What time is it?"

"It's a little past six pm. Here drink this." Akko handed her medicine

Sucy grabbed it and downed it with the remaining liquid on the glass. "Is this tap water? It tasted weird."

"No, I got it from a water bottle I bought at a store," Akko chuckled, a visible sweat trailing her chin. She must have worked out before this. "It's a lot cheaper. How are you feeling?"

Sucy recalled her whole afternoon sick at home. She performed another voodoo spell to return the Canadian to her cop stationed room at the hospital. She didn't know she fell asleep.

"I feel like shit. Where's Loa?"

"I asked her to prepare you something to eat. Come let me help you get to the kitchen." Akko grabbed Sucy by the hollow of her arm and hoisted her upwards.

Sucy was still able to stand on her own on one leg no less. Bracing herself against Akko, Sucy took one hesitant step forward.

"You're doing great." Akko volunteered.

"I can do anything," Sucy whispered with too much sarcasm before her heart melted at the fact that they were both standing next to each other that not even an ant could get in between them. "Would you want to know what I did while you were gone?"

"What did you do?"

Sucy halted for a second there. She almost talked about how she basically cheated on her by having lovesick thoughts about Lotte Jansson. Sucy debated on telling her that she has Cavendish's hair strand at her disposal.

"Oh nothing," she quickly dismissed it.

"Aww, please Sucy. Tell me." Akko attempted to use her patented puppy-dog pleading face.

Sucy folded her arms. The girl was adorable, but Sucy was stronger than that.

"Please?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Just because."

"That's not a valid answer."

"Of course it is."

"Only from your point of view!"

"Exactly," she grinned.

"But that's not fair."

"Nor is life," Sucy said. "Get used to it."

Downstairs, Loa decided to make pasta with meatballs and parmesan. It was simple, easy, and yielded lots of carbohydrates and proteins.

"Loa, you're so helpful, you're like an all-purpose Roomba!" Akko left Sucy's side, getting out two bowls and the grated parmesan cheese from the refrigerator.

" _Insolent wench!"_ Loa shrilled as if the loudness of her cry can make Akko hear her. _"I will not be compared to a dust-eating machine!"_

"Loa," Sucy subtly warned the doll for badmouthing her girlfriend.

Akko equally distributed the pasta on the two bowls, and she managed it without any disaster. It seemed that her sleight of the hand training was doing well. She began pouring the penne, marinara sauce, and meatballs into each one. She returned to the table and set one bowl in front of Sucy, and kept the other for herself. She walked back to the counter to retrieve the grated cheese and utensils.

"Parmesan?" Akko asked.

"Please," Sucy replied, as she took a handful and proceeded to sprinkle it on her pasta. Her thoughts suddenly strayed towards Cavendish, devastated; another pleasure in her life.

"Akko?" Sucy asked, getting her attention.

"Mmmm?" Akko mumbled her mouth currently full of penne.

"How's Cavendish holding out by the way?"

"She's really depressed, but she still has this Cavendish eyeliner thing going on."

"She still hasn't suffered enough then," Sucy said, taking a bite of her food. "But do you think she got the message now? Blood overflowing from his neck was a sight to behold."

"Hey!" Akko protested in between bites of her dinner. "No talking of gore while eating! Oh by the way, does Loa need any self-grooming? Does she like to be dry cleaned?"

" _What? What is she talking about, Sucy?"_

Sucy paused, glancing over at Akko. Her eyes were wide, her supper temporarily forgotten. Then she looked at the doll. "Damn, you mean all this time you're filth?"

"I volunteer to dry Loa off if you want." Akko raised her hand.

"Awesome," Sucy said. "Good. Then after dinner, I can begin."

" _Begin what?"_ Loa asked, fretting.

"Oh, you'll see. I think you'll enjoy it." Sucy smiled mysteriously.

"Sucy," Akko reprimanded. "Go ahead and finish your dinner. You'll need a lot of rest."

Finishing their dinner, Akko stood up from the table and picked up both her bowl and Sucy's and brought them to the sink. Washing them as well as the various pots and pans used to cook their meal, Akko worked swiftly and with surprising efficiency, Sucy didn't know the girl could achieve.

Sucy started to hoist herself up from the table, and turned around to Loa, a mischievous grin on her face and reached for the doll by the kitchen counter.

" _You mean you're going to clean me?"_

Sucy shrugged nonchalantly, but there was a playful gleam in her eyes. "Yes, you're filled with germs."

" _I'm AN ANCIENT BEING WHY WOULD I BE COVERED IN GERMS?"_

Sucy shoved the doll at the washer and pressed the delicate cycle button. She paid no attention to the multiple curse words muffled by water and machine.

Putting the last fork in the drying rack, Akko walked over to Sucy and held out her hand. "Let's go back upstairs."

Slowly but surely, they eased their way back upstairs and into the bedroom. Sucy took a seat on the edge of the bed and Akko leaned over and softly kissed Sucy's forehead. Sucy closed her eyes, letting herself experience and enjoy the moment.

"Are you alright?"

Sucy opened her eyes to see Akko studying her. A slight blush crept across her face as she nodded. "Tough day," she said with a hint of a smirk on her face, she had something more on her mind.

"I better get back, Sucy," Akko said after making sure Sucy was all tucked up. She grinned at her job well done and headed towards the doorway. "Goodnight, see you tomorrow!"

Her hand was reaching for the knob to yank the door open, but before she could exit, Sucy grabbed her by the waist and twirled her body around.

Sucy swiftly pushed the door shut and pressed Akko against it. Akko looked up to find Sucy's ardent eyes burning into hers. Akko gasped when Sucy swooped down to kiss her feverishly. Their teeth clashed and her tongue was in Akko's in a heartbeat.

She could feel Akko grasping at her shoulders, trying to push her away, her cries of protest muffled by her mouth. Refusing to acknowledge Akko's wishes, she roughly grabbed Akko's wrists, pinning them on the bed's soft surface either side of the brunette's head. Akko whimpered trying to regain control of her hands, but Sucy only growled, pushing her body harder into her beloved.

Lifting the girl off the floor, Akko's arms and legs automatically wrapped themselves around Sucy's sudden strong body, her hands roaming over Akko's back and squeezing her bum.

Desire washed over her like a heat wave in the desert. Her fingers laced through her brown hair, pulling it slightly and causing Akko to moan in her mouth.

The night was dangerous. It brought out the person one has kept hidden away inside. The darkness exposed the hidden depth of feelings one hadn't realized that they even possessed. Darkness had an all-powerful hunger throbbing through it that was almost forbidding one to try to fight its natural seductive nature.

But Akko gripped Sucy's shirt collar tightly and summoned her strength to wrench her lips away from hers. Sucy was about to claim her mouth again but Akko turned her head away. Sucy's eyes flicking rapidly over her face and grabbed her chin and forced Akko to meet her gaze. Only one thing was certain, Sucy's eyes were dark with desire and she could see it on the girl below her too.

"Stop it!" she cried and then broke into a heart-wrecking sob again. Everything was silent for a long moment as their chests pant.

"Akko..." Sucy's voice came out in a soft whisper, yearning to taste Akko's lips once more.

"Please, Sucy... I'm not ready yet."

Sucy looked utterly shocked with what Akko just said. Did she mess it up? Was she too impatient? Did she scare Akko away by being too fast?

Then as if forgetting herself, Sucy came to wrap her arms around Akko's waist from behind and pulled the shorter girl back against her front. In a few minutes, Akko leaned back to her chest.

"I'm sorry... I got carried away."

"That's okay," Akko said, softly heading towards the door, although reluctantly. "We have exams tomorrow, after all, Sucy. I have to get back to my desk and study."

Sucy grimaced as soon as she faced away. She heard Akko's footsteps fade as she left. Pent-up anger and bitterness flooded her system. She needed to let it all out. Someone has to be punished. She seized the textbook that contained her nemesis' golden hair and was cut short.

She had to finish cleaning Loa first.

* * *

  _ **Diana analyzed**_ the handwriting as soon as she locked herself in her room at the estate. Both Manbavaran's and the one left at the crime matched. She spent another hour reclining on her bed and mulling over the day's events.

Everything still hurt. Usually, two cups of herbal tea would fix that. Now, she actually swore off tea since this morning and considered coffee.

If someone had told the twelve-year-old Diana that she would one day prefer coffee over tea, she would have called that person something foul and taken it upon herself to make their life miserable for a week before finally demanding a formal apology.

And even after that, she probably would have held a grudge.

She grabbed one of her textbooks to review for her exams tomorrow. Her focus narrowing at the handmade bottle of ointment on her desk's surface that Miss Jansson gave her. Diana absolutely had no idea what to do with it. It felt wrong to just dismiss it.

Without any hunches what to do with it, Diana started to read. The best way to fall asleep faster is to take on the natural remedy.

After quite some time, she yawned. She stretched her arms, wondering what time it was. A quick glance at her bedside clock told her it was before midnight. Placing a bookmark in her book and setting her alarm for a bright and early morning, Diana snuggled under the covers.

She heard the sing of rasping metal as he drew a knife, intending to make a quick work of his throat. It flashed in the night, reflecting the metal with a red sheen of blood, his face bloodless and white.

She was unconscious in minutes.

Diana's whole body convulsed at another nightmare. The images of Andrew's feet tied in ropes and a knife plunging onto his jawline kept visiting her in her dreams.

She jolted from the sheets, her lungs constricted, and her voice numb and dry. She ran her fingers through her messy hair and wept silently.

It was always the same but the methods keep changing. Tonight's nightmare was all about Andrew drowning in his own blood, Frank swallowing acid, and Sucy boiling Avery alive in a witch's cauldron.

The days are false. The nights are true. Sometimes it was hard to distinguish what was real anymore. She arranged her pillows, making herself comfortable as she gave another attempt to sleep that night.

There was a banging sound somewhere. Diana opened her eyes and glanced towards her bedroom window.

"Hey!" A dark hooded Amanda was sprawled all over the glass, standing on the ledge.

Diana almost screamed out of her mind.

"Shh!" Amanda said tapping the window. "Open this thing up and let me in!"

Diana swung her legs off the bed and scrambled towards her, before deftly undoing the lock and sliding the window open. "Why are you here at this hour? Can it not wait until tomorrow?"

"Nah, I always wanted to pay you a surprise visit."

"How did you dodge the alarms?"

"Are you really asking that to your one and only?" Amanda slipped in the room, patting her skirt and removing her jacket hood.

The night breeze blew in the room, Diana shuddered. "Whatever. There better not be any stolen jewelery when I wake up. Do you have anything to report to me?"

"Yes, I saw them kissing."

"W-what?" Blood drained from her face and Diana lost her ability to think.

Amanda placed both her hands on her hips. "There's no shame attached to indulging in the sensual pleasures of life."

"I know that! B-but I... oh my goodness!" She stammered. Her mind spiraled into a weird territory of the two girls doing the same wild things to the secrets places of their bodies. Pulling her runaway thoughts back, Diana tried to concentrate on their conversation again. "I didn't know they had that sort of relationship."

"I knew Sucy had it in her, to be honest," Amanda said, unruffled, "while Akko is Akko; although they didn't reach home base. So there you have it, Sucy was sick all day and Akko was taking care of her then BOOM—feelings! I had to leave when Akko moaned. Now you have to pay for the trauma."

Diana imagined the thought of Akko moaning and it caused her cheeks to flush hotly. She began walking around in circles to keep her mind from heading towards uncharted territory.

"Why are you so rattled up by this news?" Amanda asked. "You wanted to know this. Stop walking back and forth! You're making me dizzy!"

"Akko could be in danger." Diana blurted.

"What are you talking about?"

Still pacing, Diana passed by Amanda, shooting her a glance that the other girl can't decipher judging by her looks. Diana's lips pressed into a neutral line.

"What's with that face? I can't tell if you're pleased or infuriated."

Diana's jaw clenched. It's no use, she thought. Amanda can't be deterred. She will never stop pestering her at this rate. She looked up to see Amanda her brow quirked.

"As we have agreed, I will tell you everything. After all this, you must hope I do not catch you whining to me, or you have wasted my effort in trying several times to keep you out of it."

And so, Diana spilled the whole miserable story. She told Amanda what living in the House of Cavendish had been like so far this year, how the serial killings had taken over her priorities, about the rumors that had started about her from what Blackwell informed her, how Avery was at the hospital because of her and must keep quiet about it, and about how she knows that it was all because of Sucy Manbavaran, their battle of wits and the reason why Amanda caught her little display when she stole something from a Professor's desk.

By the time she was done, Amanda was quiet for once, she started to ponder pensively. "So, you think, Sucy Manbavaran is the one who killed all those boys and tried to kill Avery."

Diana nodded.

"I believe you. You're rarely wrong."

"Nice try uplifting me."

"Thanks! I might as well try." She said cockily.

"Do you have your friends waiting out for you outside?" Diana inquired. "If not, you are welcome to use one of the guest rooms."

"Nah, but I have the Shooting Star parked outside your estate. Don't worry I will send it back. Akko can finally calm her tits." She added after seeing the disapproval on her face. "About Sucy though..."

"What about her?"

"Well, what are we going to do about her?" Amanda demanded, giving her a look that seemed to say don't be absurd. "I don't know what the best way is to go about this, though I suppose we'll have to start with figuring out if her handwriting matches—

"We?" Diana interrupted, incredulous.

"Well, of course," Amanda replied, her brow furrowing in reproach. "What, you thought you'd tell me this just to let me know that the reason why you're avoiding me isn't actually because you hate me, but because you feel like me joining you in your quest for truth will make me a target, and then I'd just leave you to fend for yourself?"

Diana glared at her obstinately and Amanda seemed to take that for confirmation because she scoffed.

"Don't act like an idiot, Cavendish. It doesn't suit you."

"Back off, Amanda," she snarled, crossing her arms instinctively. "Why in Beatrix's name would you want to help me if it means causing trouble for yourself? I've been a complete bitch to you. I'm not worth it."

"I told you not to act like an idiot, Cavendish," Amanda murmured, putting a gentle hand on one of Diana's wrists and giving her a tiny, warm smile. "You're no bitch to me. I mean you are a bitch but not that kinda bitch. Get it? Do you understand why I want to help?"

"You were only in it for the fun though. Why do you still mean it?"

Amanda looked at her straight in the eye. "I meant it because first of all, I still want to have some fun, and second of all, I like you, Diana. I thought you knew that. I didn't at first, true. I mean, yes, you're right, you used to be horrible to me," she snorted. "But these past few hours or so since yesterday, I thought we'd become friends. Was I wrong? Have I misjudged things?"

She stared at her, wide-eyed, barely suppressing her tears. "I thought you were just putting up with me, for whatever your mysterious reasons were."

The redhead laughed, and it was a strange, breathy sound that seemed oddly distraught. "You really need to get your shit together, Diana, because your deduction of solving me as a puzzle is decreasing its accuracy."

Diana had a clear idea that Amanda was prone to spur-of-the-moment but not like the one she had demonstrated earlier. "You are absolutely right. I do need to get my sh—self in order."

"Oh my, she can say the word bitch, not shit." She bantered. "Diana, you're cursed, aren't you?"

"A judgment you have repeatedly validated."

"But seriously Sucy Manbavaran had driven you insane."

Diana shot her a no-nonsense look.

"I mean come on! If she was a witch, I would have believed it without a doubt. How else could she have tortured a person even in her sleep?"

"I'm escorting you out; we will make stupid assumptions after today's exam," Diana said. Then she had to wince at the sharp pain on her neck. She placed one hand over it, her arched eyebrows knitted together.

"What's wrong?" Amanda asked. "You don't look well."

"It's nothing," she said, but she was breathing harder. Her shoulders ached so much this time, she felt as if she had been carrying one of the pyramid stones under the scorching heat of the sun.

Bile rose in her throat, the taste almost made her retch. She cupped the underside of her slightly swollen belly. She had no idea why or how her delicate stomach got upset and refusing to expel her sickly tummy contents proved to be difficult.

Her body convulsed and decided it was no time to save face. Even with Amanda there, all she wanted was to be free of the pain and discomfort. She reached for a plastic bag under her drawers and she managed to open it all before shoving her entire face inside.

Diana retched.

"EWWWW!" Amanda's cry of disgust echoed through the walls.


	24. Chapter 24

Amanda grabbed Diana's hair, helping her remove the stubborn strands out of her face as the poor girl vomited the rest of the acid out of her stomach. Her nose crinkled at the smell and looked everywhere else but the bag where the elegant Diana Cavendish threw up.

Diana moaned as she tied the bag to prevent its smell from escaping and rubbed the sides of her distended gut. Her belly finally heaved.

"Diana?" Amanda asked, worriedly.

Diana blinked hard and didn't know what to say. "It hurts."

"Your tummy?"

Diana's feet continued to scuffle around. "Calm down," she said, feeling another tingling sensation in her belly button, but it was sort of different. "It might because of the strain I do to my body and the heart-wrenching guilt I harbor. It's the faces—from the streets, the school, bearing their slightest remembrance. It has stirred it up all for me. My inner war goes on and on, in my head."

Amanda didn't speak and let her continue.

"There's this fog in my head." She did her best to describe. "Sometimes, I feel like I cannot go forward. I cannot be still. I cannot even drink tea without tasting blood and it upsets me."

"It is a perfectly rational response to an absurd situation." Amanda had to drape one of Diana's arms over her shoulders and hold her waist with her free hand. "You're burning! Shit did you get the flu?"

Diana started choking with air, her lungs did not seem to be able to work properly and the hands did not want to stop shaking anymore. She could not think at that point and it appeared that merely walking would prove to be problematic with all that pain numbing her body. She placed her hands on her chest and pressed hard on it, hoping it would ease the hurting but it didn't.

Her legs were killing her and her neck was so stiff, feeling it could break if she turned too quickly. Her heart thudded fast, becoming heavy. Every muscle in her body started heating up.

Amanda immediately brought her back to bed.

When Diana lay immobile, Amanda called for her, cupping her face. "Diana?"

Her lips moved but no voice came out. The sensation was similar to standing under the spray of scalding water in the shower, but instead of water, it was far more painful. It became too much to bear. The searing pain had put her in a trance. The weight of despair led her drained and riveted.

"I think you're just too tired, Diana. Should I call for your maid?"

"The ointment," she said weakly and gasped with pain. Her tearful eyes tried to relate all that.

"The what?"

"Hurry, on my desk!" Diana yelled, lifting her nightgown to reveal her flat stomach.

Amanda scrambled her way to retrieve the bottle, her hands fumbling in haste. She quirked it open and poured all of its contents to the areas where it ached. She seemed to know where Diana's tense muscles were and eased them with her slow and cautious motions. The tension that formed in her body began to seep away with the ointment's touch.

When Diana was able to move her hands, she reached for the areas around her torso herself. The bottle Miss Jansson provided her had emptied.

"Are you okay now?" Amanda whispered, her forehead creased, "Shit, you looked like you were dying."

Diana had a lot to say—about all her fears, her pains, her regrets, her qualms, and her complaints. She had the chance to be a bitch but she muttered flatly, already exhausted by the prospect. "I hope this semester's over soon."

Amanda looked at her like's she's gone crazy.

She very well may be.

* * *

_**The night**_ passed by in another blur of sore limbs and using sheer willpower alone to catch up on all Sucy needed to do. Everything had acquired this hazy, half-real quality to it, devoid of all familiarity, as if what happened on Friday has replaced her eyes with new ones and she looked at everything seemingly for the first time, noticing details she had somehow never noticed before, the picture frames on the living room's wall, the exact color of the bathroom tile, the order of the cereal boxes in the pantry.

Sucy found that she had lost her focus. No longer is her mindset so strictly on one thing, instead of taking note of little details around her that she ignored for years, drifting off to thoughts that arise in me these terrible bouts of dread that make me have to count things and close her eyes for a few seconds until it goes away. The seconds got longer. The feeling got more persistent as the hours pass by, refusing to leave her, latching onto her bones and demanding attention.

And it's always the same thoughts that make it come back; memories, images, all of them Akko rejecting her because she had been too forward and too fast with their budding relationship. Last night flashed for a fraction of a moment in her mind until they are translated into heavy feelings deep in her chest. Akko's face when Sucy insisted they should make love, Akko's desire and fear, the light in Akko's eyes and her legs wrapped around her hips, the fabricated image Sucy have of Akko's disgusted after what she did.

Her mistake last night consumed her every thought. Every time she tried to do something and study, it's almost as if Sucy can feel her next to her, can sense her beam without even having to look, smell the vanilla from her skin. Her only consolation was the possibility that soon Akko being Akko will forgive her.

Loa never talked to her the entirety of the night after doing another spell with the golden hair wrapped around the doll's neck. It was as if Loa gave her plenty of time to recover and brood in her room, which she didn't expect her to do.

" _Well of course I did, you were so angry I'm afraid you would dump me in dirty laundry and shoved me once more in the washer and dryer!"_

"Silence was good while it lasted," Sucy said, patting her pocket where Loa hid. "Wish me luck on exams."

" _You do know you can control your professors to give you a good mark, right?"_ Loa snorted. _"I'm not just for murder; I can aid you in any mischief."_

"Too much work for me." She shrugged.

" _And murder isn't?"_

As soon as Sucy arrived at school, there was a nagging feeling came that won't go away. Something off about it all, the people, the way Akko seemed to be missing from their usual meeting spot if they ever didn't manage to walk together to school.

When she spotted the brunette's familiar short ponytail, her lips curved upwards. "Hey Akko!" she called.

Akko didn't hear her. Or maybe she purposely ignored her. Sucy damned herself for her straightforwardness. With a grumble, Sucy opened her locker. Her eyes widened at the sight of a water bottle and a pink note that fell.

Sorry for making you feel like I don't love you. I do. But it can wait, can't it? Please take this peace offering and hydrate! (´・ω・`)

xoxo Akko

Sucy's heart was overjoyed. With Akko's love, she felt like she can do well on her exams and take today's schedule with the missed exams from yesterday. Akko's love can make her swim across oceans, reach for the stars and count all the sands without missing a beat.

" _You're getting sappy."_

A low growl threatened to escape from the depths of her throat but a wild blonde was caught on the corner of her eye.

There she was, yet again, Diana Cavendish, alive and well despite her attempt in boiling her on hot oil during witching hour before the sun rose.

Cavendish looked paler than usual, cheeks drained of color. Either in shame or fear or the effects of being boiled alive, Sucy couldn't tell. Maybe it's exhaustion. In spite of it, she is every inch a regal lady. But that didn't explain how she survived.

" _How the hell did she survive?"_ Loa echoed her thoughts.

If Hanbridge's death was difficult for her, she certainly doesn't look like it.

Gripping the hem of her skirt in uncontrolled anger, Sucy cursed all the people with blond hair and she might do just that.

Sucy reached for the water bottle that Akko provided for her and walked towards her classroom to take her exam.

A few excruciating hours later, she couldn't take any more twisted standardized exam questions but she still has a lot in the afternoon to take the exams she missed. Thanks to Professor Ursula who managed to give her the leeway.

Throat feeling a bit parched, Sucy grabbed the water bottle Akko gave her and downed all of it. The waster was refreshing, quenching her thirst. Sucy gave an involuntary shudder as the frigid water began to soak through her clothing.

"Shit!"

It left a permanent wet mark on her chest. Loa, on the other hand, was perfectly dry in her pocket.

Sucy and went to the nearest comfort room to grab some tissues to try and fix the mess she made. She became aware that she was the only one inside which was unusual. Usually, in between periods, students would clamor to the restrooms.

Frustrated that she had to deal with a wet top, she threw the empty bottle on the trash can when somebody walked in about a few minutes.

Sucy feared the doll would lash out another temper tantrum. And Loa did, this time around Sucy paid her no mind.

" _It's the other girl."_ Loa hissed.

"Hey," she greeted her with a smile, coming to stand next to her as she stared at the mirror. This was the first time they talked at school. "Why is it when I'm with you, you always had a spilled drink disaster?"

"I don't know," Sucy sighed then getting under the hand drying machine. "I'm just getting clumsy. You finish your exams for today?"

" _WHY ARE YOU CONVERSING? SHE'S TRAPPING YOU!"_ Loa roared like raging thunder in her ears. Exasperation laced its voice.

"Yes," Lotte giggled, fixing her hair before looking back at her. "You know, it might take you the whole free time if you dry it like that."

"You're right, I should let nature take its course and have it dry on its own. I have to review for more exams."

"High school," she shrugged.

An uncomfortable silence began to settle between the pair. Loa took the advantage of continuing her outburst.

" _GET OUT OF THERE, LEAVE HER!"_

Lotte stirred up the conversation once more. "How were your clothes from last time? Did you manage to remove the stain or is it still at the dirty rack?"

"Excuse you, I already washed it." She said while pinching the doll in her pocket to stop screaming.

"You should be careful you know. Students are more likely to be murdered while washing their clothes in a launderette than anywhere else," Lotte informed her in a solemn tone. "It's a known fact. Or it should be. Maybe you should come with me... Just to keep me company. If you want, maybe we can go together and do our laundry."

Sucy wondered what she meant by that, tried to read between the lines like a therapist or a psychic. Was laundry a metaphor? Did Lotte asking if she wanted them to do laundry together mean... something else? Or was Sucy just touch-deprived and desperate for a release that she started seeing innuendos.

"What are you saying; you live in an apartment without your own washers and dryers?"

"Oh dear no!" she gushed. "I can't afford it that much. It's really becoming a hassle to just stay clean while being safe."

Eventually, Sucy smiled. "Well, you know, if you hate going that much, I have my own washing machine in my flat. I could let you borrow mine if you pay me."

" _NO! HAVE YOU GONE STUPID? WHY ARE YOU INVITING HER TO OUR PLACE?"_

Lotte's eyebrow shot to her hairline provocatively. "Oh? What kind of payment are we talking about?"

"GOD NO!" Sucy's features reddened. "I didn't mean it like that. I meant you should let me borrow your Night Fall books for me to read. The way you narrate the events to me was so intriguing I can't help but like to try."

Lotte giggled. "Are you sure? Dabble in it and you'd find yourself falling deep."

"I'll take the chances."

"That sounds like fun. I'll give you my number, and then you give me yours. Next time I need do my laundry, I can call you."

It wasn't exactly the circumstances in which Sucy had imagined giving Lotte her number, but she decided that it was better than nothing. As long as they had some kind of link, even if it was only dirty clothes.

After exchanging their numbers, they smiled. With one fluid motion, Lotte turned around and exited the comfort room, and leaving Sucy in peace.

" _So,"_ the doll said the word the way that other people gave speeches. Loa could say one word and give Sucy a ten-minute lecture about her decisions with one breath.

"So," Sucy agreed with a smug, self-satisfied smile.

" _She's going to the flat to do laundry. The girl you met like twice. Are you a two-timer now?"_

Another one of Loa's many talents was the ability to simplify Sucy's life in such a way as to make her look like a fool. That actually didn't take much effort on her part.

"You dare accuse me of cheating? Well, it's not exactly a date," Sucy admitted ruefully. "I never wish to cheat on Akko. And I have to admit, in order to give Akko some freedom in our relationship; I need to have a life, right? What's a little harm with making friends? I just don't want to trap her by being too possessive."

" _Sucy, you ARE possessive."_ Loa clarified. _"Although you're not wrong."_

"Don't try to tell Akko shit." She said with a note of final before heading out to the hallway.

" _She literally can't hear me, stupid."_

Sucy turned around after hearing the familiar shuffled of her beloved.

"Hey," Akko practically chirped, holding up two bento boxes. "I picked us up some lunch."

"Thanks Akko." Sucy smiled, reaching out to take the bento closest to her reach.

"Would you want to enjoy our lunch outside the cafeteria today? I know a few places where we can share a few kisses."

Sucy's stomach suddenly rumbled, making Akko laugh.

"I'll take as a 'yes' then."

* * *

_**The strain**_ of the days had certainly taken its toll on Diana. Something she doesn't miss in the mirror. She looked washed out, sunken. Her eyes circled by bruise-like shadows. But she's not a ruin. Not yet.

Diana was aware she's in desperate need of some nutrition but she opted to get duties and work done first. So she entered the secret investigation room where the Detective Inspector disguising as a Luna Nova Professor would be.

"Did you come to report about the penmanship analysis?" the Italian woman asked, looking at her student's test papers before gasping at her sight. Not wanting to say something in front of Diana as to frighten her further, Detective Inspector Croix was alarmed to see how much weight Diana had lost.

She was a lean girl, to begin with, and her three-day lapse of self-care was starting to wear on her health and before the older woman could reprimand her, Diana slammed the paper containing Sucy Manbavaran's handwriting on the table.

"It matched." She said, thinning her lips in a neutral expression. "If you don't take my word you can bring it to an expert."

"That's too much hassle. I will take your word for it. Also..." she spoke, conversantly. "Did you know that the media finally gave a name to our new serial killer? They call them the Blytonbury Killer." The Detective Inspector ticked her tongue. "Not very creative."

Diana kept silent. She had more pressing matters to attend to rather than a distasteful name for the killer. But it would be rude to interrupt an adult or to even point it out. Her mother raised her to be better than that.

"Amongst other things, we should be glad that UKN didn't name her the Luna Nova Killer. We should look at the bright side of things more often, yes?"

Diana arched a perfectly fine eyebrow at the insinuation. She inhaled deeply, controlling her calm demeanor unless she would explode. Right there and now. No matter how much she would want to voice out her argument that the bright side of Andrew dying and Avery being hospitalized is nonexistent, she had damned herself to shut up.

Diana's old teachers and caretakers had drilled into her from a very young age the notion that a proper lady does not use vulgar language. A proper lady is always polite, and courteous in the presence of her peers, could find ways to express her frustrations without resorting to profanity—or better yet, she could just not express her frustrations, full stop. Restraint was a quality to be admired, her teachers imparted, and as Bernadette's daughter, she would do well to employ it.

"But seriously, what's happening in Luna Nova?" Detective Inspector Croix asked. "During my time, we were all busy trying to climb. Social ladders, grades, achievements, relationships. None of these—"

"To get ahead in life, we all want what's best for our children," Diana said, speaking fast but eloquently. "The best schools, the best teachers, the best education. But you might be surprised at what kids learn in the schoolyard. There are groups and gangs, rivalries and threats, hostility and mockery, exclusion and isolation. And in certain extreme cases when young people are ostracized too often, revenge and death become the only logical way out of their distress."

The older woman stared at her, aghast and eyes blinking. "Why did you get so riled up with that?"

"Any luck with Lord Fafnir?" Diana asked, diverting the topic. Her mouth went dry at the thought of disappointing her dead mother from the grave.

Detective Inspector Croix ran her fingers through her gelled hair while tapping her pen on the notes on her desk. "Uh no, he's just giving us the run around as usual."

"Is it not the time for you to send me off to deal with him? I was under the impression you would."

The older woman let out a long hard sigh, defeated. "Fine, don't go alone though. Go ask for help from a trusted person. Things are going to be more interesting around here."

"I thought they already were."

"Diana," Detective Inspector Croix said, gaining the audacity to counsel her. "You shouldn't put your nose on a grindstone like that. Take a break and have a rest."

Her muscles started tensing. She needed a release of this. Even if Diana started running in the morning, she still had to do it again—right now. She was preoccupied on daydreaming about running that she forgot she had yet replied to the Inspector.

"I can endure it."

"Being able to endure something does not equal an obligation to withstand it."

"Your concern for me is most touching."

"I don't need any sass from you, young lady. I'm sure you haven't forgotten, Diana. About how much trouble you caused me when you worked under me in past investigations."

"Suddenly dropping the past of my apprenticeship with you when I am traumatized?"

"Can't you figure it out?" she hissed. "You're the only one I can count on. There's no time. I need you to help me solve this case and I need you in your best condition. Go out there and take care of yourself. That's an order. Or else I will be forced to have someone take care of you or take you out on this case."

"Is that a threat? It's poorly executed." Diana scoffed. "So, if we are done here, I will take that as a cue to leave."

Once Diana got out of there, she started to drag her feet out of the Luna Nova campus and into the woods. She didn't know where she was heading, but when she was sure, she was out of anyone's sight, she sprinted up. Suddenly all the trees faded into blurry walls on either side of her.

Numb all over as hot air hit her face, drying away her tears. Diana wanted to keep running until she reached the edge of the universe. This world didn't belong to her. Suddenly, there were two strong arms that grabbed her by the waist, pulling her body to a stop.

"Where do you think you're you going?" Amanda's voice spoke.

Diana struggled to get her hands off her. "Don't you have any sense of private space?"

"Ouch, I didn't hear you say that when I spread the ointment through your body." They both fought, wrestling each other. "I just got to ask though, what are these claw marks on your arm? I didn't know a dog lover like you would care for cats. Or did you and cats harbor the same abhorrence?"

"It does not belong to a feline."

Amanda took a second to figure out where it came from then shrugged. "I didn't know you were that kinky! I got to applaud you though; I didn't know that underneath that entire prissy attitude, you look fine as hell! Did you want to be scratched like that? I hope you do know that fingernails aren't recommended when you touch down there."

Diana felt her hot tears rolling out of the corner of her eyes. "Are you here to harass me, Amanda? Please let me go, I just want to escape from everything, I can't—"

"You want to escape the world but you can't even escape my grip. Girl, you need to get some muscle in these bones."

Diana gasped, staring back at her.

"Yes, Professor Cruz revealed her real identity to me. She tasked me to babysit a grumpy little English girl. You're coming with me to have lunch whether you like it or not. And you know... I can stop teasing you if you would ask me to. I'm not that evil."

Amanda practically dragged Diana towards the dining hall. Diana stopped struggling once they reached a group of people.

On the corner of her eye, she saw the Headmistress' granddaughter eating all alone. She headed towards her; the girl looked up at her, noticing her presence.

"Yes?"

"Thank you for that ointment you gave me," Diana said, wanting to let it out. "It proved to be quite useful."

"Oh is it?" Lotte beamed. "I can produce more if you want."

"I am most pleased. You have my eternal gratitude."

"Miss Cavendish, would you like to eat something?" Lotte asked, pushing the chair beside her backward, inviting her. "Please join me!"

"No thank you, Lotte," Diana said, earning a glare from Amanda. "I have lost my appetite."

Lotte was unperturbed by the rejection and whimsically glanced at the American. "Would you care to sit down and eat, Miss—"

"Name's Amanda," she offered, already sitting down on a chair in front of her and attacking her chips. "We're all equal here, no more missies, alright? Thanks."

Diana had a sudden thought of slipping away unnoticed but felt a hand stopping her when they grabbed her wrist. "What?"

"There you go again." Amanda grabbed a fistful of chocolate dipped strawberries and shoved it down Diana's throat. "Eat why don't ya!"

Lotte laughed heartily at the display in front of her. She got up, excusing herself. "I guess this means I should get you two your meals. Please make sure she consumes the food, okay Amanda?"

"I like the way you talk, Lotte!" Amanda replied as she cut Diana out of oxygen unless she ingested the strawberries.

* * *

_**Sucy had**_ tried to follow the routines so religiously that she had almost forgotten about her incoming birthday. As the last week dragged, schoolwork did its best to take her mind off certain things. Exams and school projects kept coming like war's bombarding, and her mind could hardly find time to wander off.

To get through it all, Sucy found strength in the love notes Akko kept placing inside her locker, along with other surprises. Like

Soon, she would be eighteen. She was going to be a legal adult and capable of making her own decisions.

" _As if you were not,"_ the doll said.

"For legality's sake, Loa, for legality's sake," Sucy chuckled, smoothing a medium length blond hair in her fingers. "I'm still looking forward to my birthday gift."

" _Ah yes, so that Adams' riches can be legally yours as well. Do not worry about that."_

Sucy stretched, cat-like. "Christmas break starts tomorrow, I need to de-stress before I get to spend more time with Akko. I feel that I'm unable to not use you for a week."

" _You just got the itch. It is a thing rarely articulated, but there is power in taking the life of someone else, and it is unequaled by anything else in this world. It's a dangerous drug."_

"You just described it perfectly in a paragraph nonetheless," Sucy said. "Do you know what plans I have?"

Loa paused for a moment, reading her mind. _"What are you going to do with Louis Blackwell tonight?"_

"Let's give him a disease!"


	25. Chapter 25

Diana must have been tired from her lack of a good night's rest because she fell asleep almost instantaneously when she laid down on her bed after the day's event.

She dreamed. It wasn't a frightening one of her fallen friends for once. This time, it was of two girls; one with dark hair and one with light hair.

It didn't take her a while to figure that one of them was her.

Diana's pulse raced with a guilty excitement as the dark-haired girl's body pressed down harder on top of her and the stranger's hands desperately explored the naked skin of her waist and neck. Diana squirmed and whimpered as her lips sucked tenderly on her collarbone, before breaking off to trail a path of light kisses from her neck down to the line of her breasts.

After a few moments of lavishing the girl's unexpected affections on Diana, she shifted and snaked up Diana's body once more, so that she could look at her blue eyes and cup her face in her hands.

Diana gasped at the sight.

Akko's forefingers brushed fondly against Diana's lips and Diana found herself relishing the sensation, then they stopped their movements and instead pressed gently down. Whether Diana's lips parted in surprise or understanding, she does not remember, but she did part her lips and suck lovingly on the two fingers that snaked their way inside. It was obscene and embarrassing, but it felt wonderful.

She felt a fire start low in her belly, building quickly as Akko's fingers deftly moved around her center, a thumb pressed against her most sensitive spot, rubbing it with small, circular movements. With each stroke, Akko's finger curled to brush the sensitive spot inside, causing Diana to let out tiny moans with every movement.

The fingers were eventually replaced by Akko's small delicate lips and Diana gratefully responded to the warm tongue that pressed itself into her virgin mouth. She was completely overwhelmed and drunk by virtue of Akko's sheer beauty and presence. Diana's arms acted on their own when they wrapped around Akko and pulled her closer still, but she couldn't blame them for behaving so.

Diana slammed her eyes shut, her chest heaving. "Akko..."

Arching upwards, Akko continued the favor, and Diana's mind went blank. The girl on top of her was swirling her tongue in just the right way.

She didn't know Akko was capable of doing them. It was as if Akko was possessed by another being and took control over her.

Diana woke up in a daze.

It took her a few moments to realize where she was and what she dreamed off while her fingers subconsciously touched herself.

With her thoughts running out of hand, her eyes suddenly lost its focus as if every cell in her being was on the verge of exploding and in that moment of blinding passion, it hit her. She wanted Akko so badly. Everyone around her who has eyes could see it. They were right, all along.

She was drawn to Akko. Her heart pounded faster inside her chest with a frantic rhythm as she continued her fantasy.

"Fuck!" She cursed as she refracted her fingers to hit her sweetest spot. Diana had never sworn in her life, but her senses were being driven wild and she was losing control rapidly.

The tingling sensitive pleasure remained and then the smell. The wonderful smell that was new to her.

"Oh shite." She said with a newfound horror.

* * *

_**Lord Fafnir**_ lived not far away from the academy. So that morning, in an effort to forget about her dawn fantasy, Diana called Amanda. The redhead was quick to the invitation and they straightaway head towards the house was built on the top of a hill, near the Rastavan ruins. It was a colonial-style mansion with a garden surrounding it.

There was a guardhouse by the gate. Diana and Amanda got out of the car and walked up to a security camera. Immediately, a screen attached to the wall flashed a static image of a bald man, who regarded us with a glare.

"Get out of here, kids," he said through the speaker.

"We want to meet Lord Fafnir," Diana said solemnly, and a bit eager to find a distraction.

"Who are you?" the guard asked, looking at them like they were homeless people.

"A relative," she lied.

"Go away," the guard said. "Lord Fafnir has no relatives."

"Well, he does now," Diana spoke up and showed the guard her House of Cavendish crest she kept handily through the camera.

"I'm so sorry," the man quickly apologized when he saw it and opened the gate for them.

Diana and Amanda went back into the car and drove through that gate and into the beautiful courtyard. The guard must have informed the people in the house of their arrival. They came to invite them in like they were some special guests.

A man in the black suit came to greet them. He didn't ask anything and just ushered them through the hall. "Please, have some refreshments at the living room before my lord arrives," he said and offered them a tray of drinks with no alcohol.

The sight of it excited Amanda so much that she even took Diana's share with a huge grin. "Don't mind if I do!"

"What's with the noises down here?" A loud booming voice asked.

Then Diana heard the sound of someone descending the staircases. They all looked up and saw a gray-haired man in his sixties. He had a curious Fu Manchu mustache.

"My lord," the suited man bowed, "We have some guests visiting."

"Really? That's very surprising." Lord Fafnir said, giving the girls an overall look. "What could two school girls need of me?"

Amanda's eyes glanced from his head to toe and asked. "Did your parents love dragons and that's why they named you after one?"

Diana gritted her teeth as she pinched the girl.

"Ouch! Hey!"

"Such impudent child," Lord Fafnir sneered, reaching the bottom of the stairs to face them. "At least your companion has manners." He languidly directed his gaze to Diana. "And you are?"

"I'm the girl who will make you suffer, and suffer dearly if you don't start talking."

Lord Fafnir giggled. Like Diana told him the best one-liner. "Let me take a guess. Weird hair, haughty appearance, wicked eyeliner... you must be Bernadette's daughter. What purpose did a friend's child come to see me?"

"I will cut it to the chase, Lord Fafnir." Diana placed a hand on her hip, all the while snarling. "We are dealing with not one but two suspicious deaths. Among them is the recent. Andrew Hanbridge's death was caused by a lateral hit slitting his larynx and he hung upside down. All indicates either a dramatic exit or the killer practices parading mangled bodies to shame them."

"Nothing to do with me." The old man scoffed, "You got a lot of nerve, barging here and start pointing fingers."

"I can smell an accessory to murder charge in the wind." Diana taunted.

"Such imagination," Lord Fafnir said. "Women are prone to their fancies."

"I will ignore the fact that I am already a woman to your eyes, despite knowing I am 17. Might I just say that men are prone to excuses?"

The old man exhaled loudly as if he were a steam train. "Such accusations from a self-proclaimed detective is inadmissible—"

"I am a consulting detective, do your research."

"What's the difference really? Don't jump into conclusions when you have no proof, little girl."

"Do not tell me you are innocent. It insults my intelligence."

"I never killed anyone, Lady Cavendish." Lord Fafnir said, all too quickly. "The world is as wretched a place as it's ever been; a sad fact but a boon to my particular business as you all but have known. I'll have no shortage of work to tend to, which shows that I have no time to conduct a murder, less a staged one. You should tell your inspector that. Did she really think if she sends you, it will make a difference in breaking my resolve?"

"I shared her assumptions if I were to be completely honest, Godfather."

Lord Fafnir sighed. "If we're done here, Lady Cavendish, I'll have my men escort you out."

"They do not need to," Diana said, spinning on her heel with a dramatic flair. "My companion and I will see ourselves out."

Amanda swiftly downed the refreshments she held before returning them to the tray and followed her.

As soon as they got back to the car, Diana's chauffeur turned the radio off then turned the engine on.

"He's your godfather?" Amanda gawked at Diana who sat at the passenger's seat away from the redhead at the back.

"We never talk about it. See you first thing Saturday, Amanda. We ought to visit Andrew's dear old dad."

* * *

" _ **I'm sorry,**_ Sucy." Akko looked up at the older girl. Sucy turned off all the stove knobs after frying some omelet for breakfast and walked over to have a seat beside Akko.

Sucy's visible eye narrowed. "Why are you apologizing?"

"I can't hang out today," Akko said. She paused, waiting to see if Sucy wanted some explanation, which she did. "Professor Ursula insist on tutoring me of more magic trick lessons."

"Ah," Sucy said, doing her best not to show any disappointment, but her chin sunk to her chest.

"Aww, don't be sad, Sucy. I'll see you tonight!"

"But Akko, its Christmas break!" she pouted.

"Ooh what a baby." Loa cooed.

Sucy had been getting more and more immune to Loa's taunting voices. The key to it was to act like the doll wasn't there with them.

"All the more reason I should practice!" Akko said. "We're going to lose the luxury of vacations once we become seniors and go off to college."

Everyone, even the doll, could feel the frustration that surrounded Sucy. No one else spoke, and the silence fell as thick as the cloud.

"By the way, Sucy," Akko said, removing the cloud. "Do you want to have dinner with us in our apartment or do you want us to have a Christmas date?"

"I'll have both." Sucy grinned. "I haven't talked to Professor Ursula for quite some time now. It's all about school and classes. We can discuss things over Christmas dinner, it's not like we have secrets from each other anymore, right?"

Akko chuckled, almost too suspiciously. "Yep, right, no secrets."

Sucy's forehead creased at the implication. "You wouldn't mind I come along with your lessons now, do you?"

"What? But Sucy, I can't concentrate with you there!"

"Why not?"

"First of all, I get easily distracted. I need to focus on when practicing. Magic tricks are trickier if I have an audience when practicing a certain trick for the first time. Also, you're my girlfriend, of course, I will be more nervous around you."

"You're right to be nervous. You should hide from embarrassment. You have no talent at all."

"Shut up, Loa!" Sucy flared. It seemed that Loa has found a way to rebuke Sucy's strategy of ignoring her. She will have to be more annoying than ways possible. "Never insult her!"

"Why?" Akko's eyes widened as she stared at the doll sitting on the counter. "What did she say?"

"Nothing you should concern yourself about," Sucy said, returning to her feet and ambled towards the stove.

"I'm guessing it wasn't very nice." Akko patted her lap and stood up, following Sucy to the kitchen. "But I guess that's okay. It was my idea to have her washed after all."

"Fine, but please have breakfast with me, at least," Sucy said, cutting her omelet in the middle then transferring them to the plates. "You didn't have breakfast yet, have you?"

Akko chuckled and gave Sucy a wink. "I have room for more."

They ate together while Sucy told her another story of her childhood. This one was a pleasant memory, unlike all those stories about her upbringing.

"There was a short story I read when I was younger." Looking at Akko, Sucy decided that the younger girl looked for all the world like an entranced child listening to the story of Santa Claus for the first time. "A lost woman wandered aimlessly and reached a lighthouse. Both figuratively and literally. She found a man and they talked about their lives. She didn't know at the time that the man was her anchor to shore. Without him, she was lost, adrift, and uncertain. It took them years to realize they belong to one another. In a way, I was like her too. I found a girl in the lighthouse."

Sucy looked over to Akko again, a more serious look in her dark red eyes as she continued the story. "That girl is you, Akko."

Akko stared at her. "You're telling me that I'm your lighthouse?"

Sucy nodded. "Your radiance is a beacon—a shining light."

Akko shook her head, blinking rapidly. "Wow. That's just…Wow. I guess that explains why we drifted to each other, huh?"

Sucy nodded again. "Now do you understand why I'm drawn to you?"

"Yeah." She nodded. "You know, I'm happy that you were able to find something good in your horrible, messed up childhood."

"Oh? So you liked the stories where I stole some books in a secondhand library and escaped to the woods and take solace there to read and sometimes research about mushrooms?"

"Yes," Akko said, taking a bite of the egg on her fork. "As I said, the good in the bad."

Sucy put down her fork and placed her hand over Akko's free hand. "Right now, you're the only constant thing in my life." She said, couldn't help it as her voice trembled from being bare. "I don't want to lose that. Promise you won't let me go?"

Akko gulped before answering. "Do you really need my assurance?"

"Yes."

Akko closed her eyes momentarily, her expression unreadable. "Then yes, I promise. I won't let you go."

Sucy smiled in what appeared to be a relief but with a tinge of guilt. Only to be superseded by a feeling of possessiveness.

I have her now, and I'm not giving her up. She's mine.

"It's just that…" Akko trailed off. She shook her head as if to clear her mind. "Now that I said it out loud, I have been dying to tell you something."

"What is it?" Sucy said, chewing on her food.

"I'm just trying to figure everything out our future. I see that you're going to have a long healing process ahead. I'll have to basically learn your life and help you along the way. It'll be tough."

"You're not my psychiatrist, Akko," Sucy said. "Trust me, I know when someone's psychoanalyzing me or being a friend, or much more."

"That's a tough word, but I guess it has something to do with psychology," Akko said, wracking her bilingual brains for keywords. "Yeah, I'm sorry... it's just that. As your best friend and lover, I feel like I should help you."

"It goes both ways, Akko. There's a lot to unpack in me, and there's a lot to unpack in you. We don't need to save each other, just be there for each other. That's the most misconception about love. We treat as if our lovers are our saviors, but we just place a huge burden for them. Unless one person is really selfless while the other really needs saving."

"Yeah, but... you need more help. But..." Akko felt the rush of words escape her lips, but her words became quieter as she spoke. Afraid Sucy might not like it. Sucy; however, didn't seem to notice, and if she did notice, she wasn't acting like she had known what those words were.

"But what?"

"What if, let's say... I'm the selfless person?"

"And I'm the one that needs saving?" Sucy asked, her eyes flashed as her voice grew.

"Well okay then, how about we reverse it?" Akko pointed a finger to her nose. "What if I'm the one that needs saving, and you are the selfless person? You'll stay with me, right? You won't leave me?"

"Of course. I'm not letting you go."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

"Then you would understand what I would do for you, right?"

"Akko, I literally killed for you. Of course, I understand."

After breakfast, Sucy sadly watched as Akko walked out of her flat. Noon hadn't even come by, yet it had been long and tiring. Especially with Akko not around, so she was ready for an afternoon of hexes and killings complemented with pizza and a movie.

Her phone set off right after and she smiled after seeing the caller ID.

"Hello?"

"Hey," Lotte's sweet voice came from the other line. "So it turned out that I was going to do my washing today. I called to ask if your offer still stands. Can I go today? And if it's okay, can I have your address? "

First, Sucy pinched herself, then she did a little dance around the room. "Yes," she replied. "Of course, I'll text you my address. Bring those books. I'm so bored I might be able to finish more than two books in one sitting. What time would you go here?"

* * *

" _ **You have**_ some visitors, Lord Hanbridge." The young butler's voice informed.

"On a fine Saturday noon, who?" they heard some conversation coming from the front door of the house, and the sound of footsteps echoed in the hall.

"Lady Diana Cavendish with a Lady O'Neill and they insisted on seeing you," he said.

"The young Cavendish?" the man said in wonder. "I must see them."

Diana tapped her hand in her hip, counting steps. Her keen eyes watched the walls with blistering focus.

Then the Lord of the House and his servant walked towards the dining room, Diana and Amanda stood up from their chairs, turning their faces to see Andrew's old father. He joined them at the dining table, sitting at the head of the table.

"Young Diana, oh my dear, you have grown so much like your mother."

"I am reminded every time I stare at the mirror," Diana said. It shifted something in her, shadowing her features. "Excuse me for saying so, Lord Hanbridge but you don't seem to be very bereaved."

Lord Hanbridge chuckled, his eyes glazed over reminiscing a distant past. "Forgive me, it is so because—"

"You fancied my mother in your youth?" Diana asked as if the certain sentence revealed all that was needed to be heard. Amanda's eyes widened at the prospect but with a wicked glint on her eyes.

The old man coughed, taken aback. "It seems so, yes. I cherished her above all else, but she married another. Truthfully, my dear, your father was the bane of my existence. I loathed him so much that when he died prior to your birth, I felt guilty."

"You caused not his death."

"Although it seemed so at the time," Lord Hanbridge grabbed his wine glass and took a humble sip. "When I had my son and she had you, history appeared to repeat itself, but I hoped my son should have a happy ending."

Diana narrowed her eyes. "Are you saying?"

"Do you not have eyes, young lady?"

Diana groaned, frustrated. "Why does everyone keep saying that? Andrew does not fancy me that way—"

"You might have turned him down, unaware."

Diana opted to clench her jaw tight.

"All I'm saying is..." His voice trailed off. "T-this is my karma. If I hadn't wished for your father to die—"

"With all due respects, my lord, I never knew my father so I am quite detached."

"Stone cold," Lord Hanbridge murmured. "I remember my son telling me you were impossibly stone cold with men."

The smug smile on her face morphed into something different, a notch below a glare.

He caught Diana's glare and sputtered. "I... don't blame you at all for his apparent suicide. He took the coward's way out and I am ashamed I never was a good father to him."

"Because you wanted to make up for some failure on your own, put pressure on him and project your own ambitions on him? Oh, believe me, my mother did that to me as well, but I never hated her. Even when she died and left every responsibility to me, I never antagonized her. I held onto her memory with such a high regard. And most certainly, Andrew didn't kill himself from depression, he was killed!"

"You have a way to try comforting me, young lady." He decided to throw away all his humility and downed his wine. The Hanbridge Butler poured him another one while he asked. "But what's the difference if my son was killed instead? It is still karmic evidence. Sins of the father will be visited upon the child. I have a lot of bones to pick up with. You should be careful as well."

Diana tightened her jaw harder. "You are unbelievable, sir. No wonder you resort to cocaine at times."

The Minister of State regarded her, taken aback by her direct accusation. "I will have to consider that I did not just hear you say that."

"Whatever pleases you, sir," Diana refrained from smiling.

"Have you seen his body, my dear? The way his fingers hold firm, unwavering, and his grip tight on the hilt of the knife? That wasn't murder, that's a desire to end it all."

"I know that." Diana hissed. "I saw him with my own eyes."

The two merely exchanged glares. A loud slurp forced them to face reality they had momentarily forgotten that Amanda O'Neill was with them; drinking some sort of mystery drink that she had the butler fetch for her while they had a conversation.

The American let out a disgusted response upon tasting her beverage. She then proceeded to add more sugar cubes in her cup and tasted it once more. Once satisfied she made herself comfortable on her seat and said. "Don't stop at my expense. Go on."

Diana inhaled deeply; somewhat glad Amanda was with her. And despite the sheer absurdity of Lord Hanbridge's words, they left her with an unsettling feeling in the pit of her stomach that would stay there for the remainder of the day.

Changing her facial expression with a reluctant pleasantry, she asked. "What were you doing with Lord Fafnir last Saturday? Surely a Minister of State such as yourself would be spending his weekend wisely?"

"He and I had been able to chance upon an agreement to become philanthropists." Lord Hanbridge said. He wasn't a particularly chatty man but the influence of alcohol in his system and the death of his son loosened his tongue a little.

"Oh?" Diana noticed the way his facial features transitioned easily from a man who had not undergone an emotional distress to a man who was concerned about charities. "He didn't strike me as a particularly charitable type."

"My dear," he said, carefully, watching his words. "When a member of the manufacturing classes attempts to buy respectability, who am I to say him nay?"

Diana huffed low in her throat to stop her impending giggle in utter disbelief she saw through his lie. But she steeled herself, waiting. Retrieve more information, evidence, proof her suspicion. "Oh don't tell me. He wants to join you at the parliament and you are helping him."

"Indeed I am."

Despicable, Diana wanted to say but couldn't. She held her tongue. Never in her life had she been so certain of an educated guess. "Did you approach him?"

"Oh no, young lady, you are deeply mistaken. He invited me to his home to have that chat. He had astonished me with his outlandish but concrete plans. He gained my support."

Everyone knew that Lord Fafnir was an ordinary old man that only cared about his riches and his benefits. Paul Hanbridge might have been unpleasant at times, but the man has standards. He hated frivolous people who don't live up to their reputation and legacy. Especially Gatsby types like Fafnir and her Aunt Daryl. Always throwing large parties, always reaching for their green dot.

Diana didn't need to think twice to find out how Lord Fafnir could sway Andrew's mind.

Diana stuck to ice water, speckled with slices of bright lemon. She raised her glass with a smile, "Impressive that a man with as little education as Fafnir could concoct such an elaborate plan."

"Well, you can't assume education and intelligence go hand and hand."

"No, of course not," Diana said sweetly like almond chocolate laced with poison. "But I'm certain that medications are hard to come by sometimes. Especially if it's not recommended by a doctor."

The old man's forehead creased at the implication.

"Hey nerds," Amanda said. "Can somebody please fucking explain what's going on? I'm a little slow with British drama. Or rather yet, I hate this passive-aggressive thing going on. Can you guys be more direct?"

Diana wanted to smack Amanda for her lack of grace, as well as for rudeness of the question. Yet she remained unfretted and continued to intimidate the politician. "You better tell the truth, sir. It's of your best interest. If you insist on protecting him, you can be indicted for obstructing justice. Also, it's merely my meager suggestion, now I might be wrong of course, and it's simply my word against yours. I am merely 17, no weight in court against your authority."

"A frightening 17-year-old you are, Diana." He inhaled deeply. He seemed to age a decade when he let his walls down. "It was supposed to be medicinal but in time I needed it more and more. I couldn't let my son or anyone know it."

"So Lord Fafnir will give you a lifetime supply if you support him," Diana concluded.

"Correct, but I don't believe he killed my son." He dabbed his handkerchief on his sweaty forehead. "I can assure you Andrew knew nothing about the smuggling. Neither did Frank. So, of course, you must wonder what their connections were with Lord Fafnir's illegal side business, they had nothing to do with it."

"I believe so too." Diana tapped her fingers on the table. "I believe we are wasting our time here since your case with Lord Fafnir is a separate one. Needless to say that the police think they were murdered because they found out about Lord Fafnir's smuggling racket; and, because you—my good sir—is a user. Even if theoretically, Andrew knew about it, I am certain Lord Fafnir would not just kill his customer's son. Most especially, a loyal son such as yours would not rat out his father."

"How are you going to convince the police?"

"A signed confession would make it easier. Everything you know about Fafnir's illegal business." Diana said. "Call up your lawyer perhaps or stay quiet while the town and country gossip about you. Either way, this puts you in the clear, but not in the eyes of gossipers that might ruin your reputation. I am certain you would not get through this for it is quite damning."

"I am almost sorry to disappoint your inspector that I am not my son's killer."

"I would not take it personally. Suspicion is her stock trade as mine is detecting lies." Diana said as a servant cleared out the salad plates.

In its place, a plate of particularly juicy cut of steak flanked with golden fried onions, mashed potatoes, and leafy greens cooked in sauce slid onto the table.

"It's not bland!" Amanda gasped and almost bowed upon the sight of her sacred dish. "I would like to thank not only god but Jesus!"

Diana rolled her eyes at her and minded her own business. She scraped the plate as she sliced a cut from her steak and took a bite. The taste was good and juicy, but somehow she wanted her potatoes to be salty enough.

Amanda seemed to have noticed her behavior and ask. "Do you want me to pass you some salt?"

"I can reach for it. I am in no mood for you to attempt to throw someone over the table."

"I have an advice for you, young Cavendish." The Earl said while cutting his steak. "You should stop building walls around you. No one might find the time to climb them. It's so hard to watch a bright young girl become so adrift."

"I will keep it in mind."

After a hearty meal of the greatest delicacies and the most luscious drinks, Diana and Amanda ventured onto the front door towards the waiting car.

"You know," Amanda spoke, conversantly. "That was intense!"

"Remind me again and I will—"

"Oh god Diana, can you like chill? I'm just hella excited because the planet earth is turning slowly!" Amanda cried.

"The wheels of justice turn slowly," Diana said in a monotone.

"Have you realized you've been craving salt lately?"

"I must be experiencing mineral deficiency. Sodium has its many benefits."

"Oh really?" Amanda quirked a brow. "You can say you're stressed out and ovulating, you know? Rather than be vague and shit."

"I'm genuinely surprised you even know about that."

"I might not look like it, Diana, but I'm an educated lady too!" Amanda growled at her before intertwining her fingers behind the crane of her neck to rest her head. "So what now?"

"Inform the Detective Inspector."


	26. Chapter 26

Wangari's recorder rested on top of the desk, recording. Diana eyed the device, she wanted to throw it against the wall. "Sounds like you coerced a statement from the Earl, Diana. We'll see if the judge agrees."

"It is naught but a friendly advice, Wangari," Diana said, crossing her arms as she seated opposite the journalist. "The House of Cavendish and the House of Hanbridge have relations after all. Amanda was there, ask her to confirm my story."

"Hey, I don't even understand what's going on." Amanda quipped.

They were in the Detective Inspector's secret office, who was busy in a phone call. They were waiting for her to tell them what will occur.

"You know what would be funny?" Amanda asked, laugh escaping her lips as she told her joke. "If Croix over there would one day enter her secret office and finds us all cozy inside and says 'Hello people who don't work here.'"

Diana knew it was a reference to something but she wasn't that cultured to it as much.

"Alright." The older woman turned the phone off and said. "Diana, your sleuthing skills have vastly improved."

"I know you want to tell me 'I suck' if I were to use a mundane colloquialism, so why would you not?"

"You'll have to answer your own question." She said, dismissing her. "We will dispatch a team to Lord Fafnir's residence right now. I think it's time to divide and conquer."

Diana exhaled as she stood up, smoothing the creased fabric of her uniform.

"You're not allowed to come with, Diana." Detective Inspector Croix told her flatly.

Diana never knew she would find herself here of all places. When she told Amanda that they should let the Detective Inspector know what they found out, she had no way of knowing she will end up like a bratty child who was never allowed to go buy candies.

"Why not?" she asked.

"It's not something you should see." The Detective Inspector was checking the time.

With the evidence presented by the Minister of State, Diana knew they received warrants to raid Lord Fafnir's estate. The older woman had already dispatched a team, but she was itching to go after them as well.

Diana wanted to go with her. She needed to rev up her persuasion game as Amanda would call it. "Look, if you fear you are contaminating the innocence of a minor—"

"I'm well aware you know what cocaine is and its history. You're a doctor's daughter for god's sake! I just need you to be safe!"

Diana raised an offending eyebrow. "Really? But Wangari and Amanda are allowed to come with?"

"I'm the school's journalist," Wangari said, simply.

Diana then turned to Amanda. "And one of them has a weapon?"

Amanda smirked, carrying a dart gun—but it felt like a piece of heavy lead in her hand, dragging her down. "Uhh... it's a toy gun. Croix has the real gun."

"Sure," Diana said, raising a tentative brow.

"I'm an American, sweetheart."

"That does not excuse you from the law!" Diana yelled, her jaw muscles taut. "And what's with that dart gun? Everybody knows there's no such thing as UK legal self-defense item! You could be sent to the juvenile if the coppers found you with it!"

Amanda pointed at the Detective Inspector. "She's seen me hold it."

"It's a toy gun, Diana, I checked it myself." The Detective Inspector said an obvious lie.

Diana gave her a look.

"Look, the point is..." The Italian woman said. "Stay here. You certainly don't need more traumas."

"So you would let Amanda and Wangari get the trauma?"

"Trauma builds character." She said like it's a piece of cake.

"Whatever," Diana huffed but sat down on her chair and crossed her arms. "If your unethical and unorthodox methods will bite you sooner than expected, I won't be there to help you."

* * *

 _ **"Good afternoon,"**_ Her blue eyes beneath her glasses pierced into Sucy as mercilessly as she spoke those words, prodding around inside her mind, wrenching open Sucy's chest of secrets, and she was defenseless against such an attack.

The resolution of this decision faded slightly when Sucy saw Lotte, and even more so when she finally opened the door to greet the Finnish girl and bathed in her smile. Her shine was back to its full power and Sucy could hardly bear to look at her.

It hurt Sucy's eyes to stare at her for just a second and know that she would never have her. Sucy forgot how painful it was to crush on someone knowing it can never happen.

Sucy could still hear Loa's incessant screams and warnings even when she shoved the doll deep into her closet. As usual, she tuned her out to hear what the beautiful Finnish girl has to say.

"I brought my laundry!" Lotte pulled the bag she carried on her left to their eye level and did the same with her right. "And the first few volumes of Night Fall!"

"Cool," she replied and directed her to washer inside her flat room.

" _Why do you assert on ignoring me?"_ Loa growled. The doll's vocal cords should have been hoarse by now if it was a real person.

Luckily, Sucy could pretend to be busy on her own, while Lotte stuffed her clothes into the machine and trying to figure out which buttons to push and set the monster into motion.

After that, they talked about the book before Sucy got into reading. And it was fine. It was still laundry and reading, but Sucy had fun. Although, Sucy did begin to feel as though the euphoria Lotte produced in her was starting to be almost canceled out by her frustration at not being about to touch her, or tell her how Sucy really felt.

There was a moment that Sucy almost did, if not for Loa reminding her that she had a girlfriend. Sucy came close to pushing past her own fear and just blurting it all out, but then Lotte seemed to sense that something was coming and fixed her eyes on Sucy;

Since Lotte had no idea of the internal struggles Sucy had been having, but she emerged from her cloud and let her own personality shine through a little. Sucy could make Lotte laugh from her perfection impressions on character voices as she read the lines in the book, and that thrilled Sucy quietly. Each smile permeated Sucy's skin and danced maniacally in her stomach. Sucy could see that Lotte didn't laugh enough usually, if at all.

Lotte seemed afraid to let go, and as soon as the echoing sound of her own amusement reached her, she would stop, startled by the sound.

"Before we get to the next chapter," Lotte said. "What do you think of the story so far?"

Sucy huffed. "I think that the love triangle is bullshit and that both men are using Belle as a leverage to their missing heterosexuality."

"Oh my god!" Lotte gushed so hard Sucy swore she saw some hearts flew from her. "So you do feel Edgar and Arthur's tension!

"It's very evident. These whole Nightfall volumes seemed like a gay slow burn. Why does it feel like Annabel Crème is a 12-year-old instead of a woman in her fifties?"

"I bet it's because Annabel gets with the times! Oh, I can't wait till you reach the prison arc when a nuke was going to terrorize France—oh wait, spoiler alert!" Lotte continued her squealing and flipped the next page. "Oh no!"

"Why? What's happened?"

"It's just..." Lotte hesitated a little, but she told her. "It's the crap chapter of Nightfall where it's clear that Annabel Crème ran out of time before the deadline so everything cool happens off-page, and the characters just talk about it afterward."

* * *

" _ **You should**_ have seen it, Diana!" Amanda shouted at the top of her lungs.

Wangari had long been typing her findings and information onto the computer and Detective Inspector Croix came with her fellow coppers to the headquarters, leaving Amanda to relay what happened to her in excruciating detail.

"It was awesome! The coppers show up at the mansion but no important was there! We head over to the Rastavan ruins, and guess who opens the door a crack when they knocked?" she then knocked the table, reacting how everything happened.

Diana was looking at her, an eyebrow furrowed, staring up at her from her seat.

"Fafnir! And he books it!" Amanda ran in place. "He was heading straight towards where we were so DI Croix and I kick down the door and chase him up the fire escape to the roof. Fafnir's running toward the edge, and we see someone has laid down these planks over the alley, kind of a makeshift bridge to the next building. Know what I do?"

"You shot the planks." Diana provided.

"Damn straight I did." Amanda pointed an air gun into the distance. "I shoot the first one, bang! But old mustache decides he's going to try his luck with the remaining plank, and he takes his first step."

Diana almost rolled her eyes when Amanda took a meager step as if she was on a theater show.

"Guess what I say?" Amanda asked, excitedly.

"One more step, and it will be planks for the memories?"

Amanda narrowed her eyes at her. "Really? You think I'd say something like that?"

Diana shrugged before crossing her arms. "You would."

"I said, stop!" She pointed an air gun at Diana again. "I don't want to kill you, and you don't want to die!" She then grinned, placing both her hands in her hips while Diana rolled her head. "That's not bad, huh?"

"Derivative, but whatever. Although I must ask, are you exaggerating to me?"

"Let her tell her tall tale," Wangari said. "What's important is, Lord Fafnir was caught red-handed."

"Lord Fafnir's business might be vile, but technically he is not a murderer." Diana said. "We might have caught a drug lord, but not the Blytonbury Killer."

"You're not going to have a chat with him in the interrogation room then?" Wangari asked.

"There is no need to. I am fairly convinced he is not at all associated with it."

* * *

 _ **Lotte's laundry**_ was completed then they set off down the couch. Time went on by too fast, but Sucy was a fast reader and Lotte was excited by that fact.

Sucy was about to finish the fifth book and it was getting late, around nine in the evening. She flipped to the last page when Lotte swiveled around at the waist so that she was half-facing her, resting her arm on Sucy's lap.

She became aware of every inch of her, even though her eyes could only take in Lotte's face, and her eyes, which were fixed on hers. The words on the pages seemed to melt away, or maybe she had stopped paying attention. All Sucy could see was her blue eyes and the look of longing in them.

She was suddenly sure what Lotte wanted her to do. Sucy knew that look knew that she was probably giving Lotte the same one.

Without pausing to think, fret, or reconsider, Lotte dipped her head forward and brushed her lips against Sucy's. As soon as they met, Sucy exhaled, as though she had been holding her breath for quite a while, and pressed back firmly. Lotte was all around her. Her hair, her warmth, and her scent. The air Sucy breathed in was made of cherries.

Lotte's arms were fiddling on something before it spread around her and Sucy's bones were aching with the shock of reality and fantasy meshing finally.

It was only a temporary meeting of two separate realms. The door bolted open with a bang, and Sucy and Lotte broke apart.

Stepping from the doorway was Akko. Sucy sat on the couch. She wasn't alone, though—not by a long shot. The bright orange haired girl was with her, a girl Akko had never seen before, and her beloved had caught the two of them locked together in a passionate embrace.

Dizziness washed over Sucy as if all the air had been sucked out of the room. That's an emotional affliction that makes it difficult for her to breathe in any small, confined area. She tried to back away from Lotte but stumbled.

What had she done? Why had she cheated on her when at no time had she planned such a thing?

She started shivering.

Akko froze. All of them were staring at each other. Sucy noticed that Lotte's top buttons of her shirt were undone, showing a strip of a lacy bra. Sucy felt as if she were about to throw up.

"Oh, umm, sorry." Lotte's hands went to her blouse, quickly doing up the buttons. Her face relaxed into a slightly embarrassed smile, as she retrieved her discarded glasses to see the face of the blurry figure who interrupted them. She extended her hand for a shake. "Sorry, that must have been a sight to see... uh, my name's Lotte."

Akko didn't answer—she was looking at Sucy, who was staring at her incredulously.

Loa's sinister laugh echoed throughout the vacuum of the room. " _And so the plot thickens."_

Sucy's skin was drained of all color, showing the dark rings around her eye. She looked at Akko as if she were staring down the barrel of a gun.

"Lotte," Sucy's voice was without warmth or color from guilt. "This is my best friend, Akko."

"Oh. Oh!" Lotte's face heated up, her glasses were fogged. "Sorry! What a way to meet you. Hi, I'm Lotte." She advanced on Akko, still smiling, her hand out.

Akko merely stared at the outstretched hand with distaste. Lotte couldn't read the uncomfortable aura permeating through the air.

" _I don't think your beloved can touch your other woman,"_ Loa said.

Sucy gulped with a sinking feeling of horror. Akko looked at Sucy, who seemed to read the expression in her eyes; unsmiling, Sucy took Lotte by the shoulders and spoke closely in her ear. "She's also my lover."

"What?" Lotte looked surprised before searching their eyes and finally understood the awkwardness. "Oh," she uttered, then shrugged. She took her dried laundry and headed for the door without another word.

This left Sucy alone with Akko. Alone with someone who was still looking at her as if she were Akko's worst nightmare come to life.

"Akko," she said and took a step toward her.

Akko backed away from her as if she were coated in something poisonous. "What in Jennifer's name are you doing here with another girl, Sucy?"

Despite everything, the harshness of Akko's tone hurt.

"She's a fellow classmate in Philosophy class! She came here to do laundry while she let me read her Night Fall books. I didn't know she would do that. She came onto me!"

"Oh really? Since when were you interested in Night Fall? Didn't you say it yourself that a sparkling vampire is against the folklore? You could at least pretend you were glad to see me. Even a little bit. But no! You have the nerve to cheat on me!"

"I am glad to see you," Sucy said. Some of her usual colors had come back, but the shadows under her eyes were still gray smudges against her skin.

Akko waited for her to say something else, but Sucy knew she won't be able to salvage this situation she had gotten herself into. So to Akko's eyes, she may have seemed content just to stare at her in undisguised horror.

"This isn't you, Akko. Usually, you would forgive me for my mistakes. And this one clearly isn't my fault. I hate it when you act like this—"

"Oh, you hate it, do you? Well, I should better stop doing it, then, shouldn't I?"

"Akko listen to me." Sucy reached for her.

"You had no right to do what you did!" Akko snapped at her, suddenly furious. She didn't think Akko ever shouted at her before. "Cheating to me like that. Lying to me like that. You had no right—"

"I didn't lie to you!" she shouted back. "I hanged out with another friend while you were busy learning how to trick people with your so-called magic, you stupid, stupid girl. I'm your lover and I—"

"And you what? Do you own me? You don't own me, whether you're my best friend or my lover!"

" _Are you two trying to kill each other?"_ Loa was so quiet that Sucy forgot that she existed, until now.

"SHUT UP LOA!"

The door behind Akko flew open. It was Professor Ursula, soberly dressed in a maroon track suit, her blue hair in disarray. She wore incredulous expression on her usually calm face. "What in the name of Jennifer is going on here?" she said, looking from Akko to Sucy, worriedly. "Are you two fighting?"

"Not at all," Akko said. As if by magic, it had all been wiped away: her rage and her panic, and she was calm again. "I was just leaving."

"Good," Professor Ursula said. "Because I need to talk to you, Sucy."

"No, wait, Akko," Sucy said, her voice filled with warmth. "Please forgive me, I am sorry. If you want, I can bind our thoughts using voodoo magic again. So you could see I'm not lying to you. I never intended to cheat on you."

Akko sighed. "I forgive you. It's just..." She swung her leg to and fro on the floor. "Just. I'll sleep in for the night."

Sucy's mouth hung open as she hopelessly watched her walk away. "Goodnight, Akko!" she called, but she was only received were angry footsteps.

Professor Ursula's forehead creased as she stared at Sucy, crossing her arms. "I will not ask what occurred before I came."

"Good," Sucy stated, her eyes stung as she stopped herself from crying there and now. "What do you want to talk about?"

"Did you or did you not kill Andrew Hanbridge?"

Sucy glared back at the older woman. "What's it to you if I did?"

"I suppose you didn't leave any evidence swarming around?"

"I controlled him to get rid of his spying devices and everything that entails his whereabouts," Sucy said. "Don't worry, Akko is perfectly safe. I won't get her in trouble."

"That's a promise I trust less and less every day."

"You should relax. There's no sign the murder was staged. Everyone's baffled, and they all blame Cavendish for his suicide"

"His suicide is quite excessive don't you think? No one would kill themselves in such a way, Sucy."

"It is his design."

"Fine," Professor Ursula said, knowing full well she will never win against her. "I just hope you know what you're doing."

"I am keeping track of the times you told me that exact line and I assure you, it's more than the fingers on my hands."

"There's one more thing I'd want to address with you." The French woman said hard lines creased her face. "The bouquet Sir Hanbridge bought, it had your penmanship. The cops will be questioning you about him sooner or later."

"I don't need your lessons about having a poker face," Sucy said. "I managed to lie my way through on my own, I don't need your pointers. And besides, he went there of his own accord, it won't be technically a lie."

Professor Ursula cocked a brow for the rude behavior, but she couldn't do anything about it. "I'll see you on Christmas Eve then."

"Can't wait."

The retired Magician nodded before she headed out. Once Professor Ursula was gone, Sucy was finally able to breathe again. The room had a steady influx of air once more.

"Loa," Sucy whispered.

The sentient small-scale humanoid figure descended from the room upstairs, carrying the spell book that weight more than its body mass

"Why didn't you try to stop me?" she asked, her voice in the midst of breaking. "You haven't voiced out for hours."

" _I knew you wouldn't listen. I might be a heartless killer machine, but rejection hurts me... sometimes."_

"What you said before." Sucy inhaled sharply. "Is it true? Did Lotte placed a love spell on me?"

" _I am sure of it."_

"What's the counter curse?"

" _Forgive me, Sucy."_ The doll and flipped to another page of a love spell antidote. _"Since we don't know what kind of love spell she used on you, we have tried a simple but powerful counterspell first. You have to brew this yourself."_

"What if it didn't work?"

" _Then, she's a bigger threat than we thought."_

"Why? Just who is she, Loa?"

" _Your curses and hexes are resistant to the ministrations of Western medicine, Sucy,"_ she said, her voice was oozing with black tar and heavy from the words. " _It is almost too flawless, if not for one thing. Only a Southeast Asian traditional folk healer can reverse the effects of such sorcery. And Sucy, if she practices it... that means she has the power to stop you. What's not to say she was doing her job of hindering you since the beginning?"_


	27. Chapter 27

Diana stared at her companion seating next to her at the back seat on a Saturday before Christmas. Per usual, Carter was driving them towards the Church and they were caught in the holiday shopping traffic.

The truth was, Diana hadn't known Akko would call her for the continued favor. Diana was planning to head over to the flower shop where Sucy Manbavaran works. There is a slight chance she might catch some detectives interviewing the Filipino girl, and she was ever curious to see how Manbavaran would smoothly lie this one out.

Yet, everything was thrown at the window. Beside her, Akko had a pocket notebook and a pen in her hand, she was translating some Japanese words in English.

As she scribbling away, Diana dared a glance at her hands. The fingers of Akko's right hand were tapping in contemplation. She had the most delicate-looking but calloused hands than any girl Diana had ever seen.

Diana just wanted to hold them and kiss the fingertips. Just looking at her hands was doing the same wild things to the secrets places of her body. And the remembrance of the dream from last night did not help either.

She scowled at herself and looked away, impatiently thrusting a fringe of blonde hair out of her eyes. Ashamed of her fantasies involving Akko. She had done splendidly on forgetting that stupid dream, until now. She had learned no matter how much she ignored it, it will come back tenfold to haunt her.

"Making a habit of calling me for sneaky transportation, are we?" Diana spoke conversantly. With the object of her affection that close to her, her rational thoughts and her control were decreasing.

"And I am forever indebted to you," Akko said, bowing for common courtesy.

"Please refrain from calling it that." Diana smiled. "It is my decision to help you with purchasing Virgin's tears incognito."

Akko's face scrunched up. "Eh?"

"Angel's tears, Lourdes water, Ganges, water, water from the Fountain of Youth, or the Blytonbury Chalice, whatever you want to call it."

Akko chuckled silently at the list of names.

"If you would allow it, Akko. I would love to know the purpose of the Holy Water. Nothing had piqued my curiosity this much, and I am literally dying to know."

"You sure you can't guess your way to answer that?" Akko raised her brow, thought-provoking her. "Ever since we met you've always been challenging my intellect and you always pry your nose into other people's business."

She slowly shook her head. "I fear I am absolutely clueless."

Akko blew a raspberry, "It's not a big of a deal."

Diana placed a caring hand on top of Akko's. A sudden spark was emitted, sending a slight shock to Diana's body. But she didn't flinch her hand away, she liked the feeling of her smooth skin. "Please?" she batted her eyelashes.

She could swear she saw a cute small blush spreading Akko's features.

"It's so that I could be blessed," Akko said, abruptly. Her flushed face disappeared almost instantly. "There's a tradition in Japan where we buy lucky charms and holy items to help us pass our exams, but I have been doing it since I was young I feel like it's losing its powers. Sucy mentioned that in the Philippines. They would often have a priest douse their pencils and pens with Holy Water so they may use it during their exams.

Diana frowned at the dependency of prayers and luck, she lifted her brow skeptically. "I never took you for a believer in that sort."

"Don't kill it for me, Diana. It helps those who believe and is harmless for those who don't."

"In a way, you are absolutely right." Diana's shoulders drooped.

"I can show you some magic!" Akko said, easing the tension between them. She pocketed her pen and notebook before retrieving for some playing cards in her other pocket and shuffled them. She produced a little smoke and suddenly the cards were replaced with a bouquet of white roses.

The magic trick definitely served its purpose.

"They match your attire perfectly, don't you think?" she asked as the white roses gradually turn into blue, before handing them over to Diana, who immediately turned red.

"Your sleight of the hand is actually good," Diana muttered, loving how the blue roses complemented her blue dress. "This is my first time seeing you done this."

Akko then winked at her, causing Diana's face to heat up.

"I have questions about Sucy Manbavaran, Akko. I hope you don't mind."

Akko scratched her cheek, shyly. "I don't mind... I guess it depends on the question."

"Do you think it was possible that Miss Manbavaran is obstructing any information about Andrew's visit to the flower shop?"

All the joy and smiles disappeared from Akko's ebullient face. "I'll have you know, I like Sucy. We are dating for a reason. So please don't say anything disparaging about her."

Diana gasped. Akko was telling her so much of what she had longed to hear—the confirmation of their romantic relationship from Akko's lips—and yet, Diana kept waiting for that terrible thing that kept her on edge, waiting for the knife to plunge. And once Akko had found her opening, she had driven the knife in deep, assaulting her and leaving her to be crushed under the weight of the silence she had been forced to keep.

"Your English vocabulary is broadening." She responded a completely different topic but never strayed so far.

"Thanks! Professor Ursula gave me extra English lessons so my vocabulary would equal an English girl my age!"

"The irony of it. A French woman teaching you English." Diana chuckled to herself, while Akko looked like she conjured a huge question mark behind her head.

"Would you like to be the English person to teach me your language?" Akko asked.

"Pardon?"

"Come on, in return I can teach you some Japanese."

"I have learned multiple languages by now, Akko." Diana considered it for a moment. "But since you offered, Japanese would actually be good in my repertoire."

"Why?" Akko asked. "How many languages do you speak?"

"I am certain you are not prepared to know."

* * *

 " _ **You have**_ no other records for flower deliveries that might indicate Andrew Hanbridge bought those flowers instead of through person?"

Sucy didn't like the tone of the man's voice or the cloud that seemed to have descended upon the room. She was just minding her own business during her shift at the flower shop when a constable barged in to ask her questions and they had been going at it for the last 30 minutes or so.

"No, constable," Sucy said in the light, careless tone she generally used when discussing the truth sarcastically. "As I told you, he went in here for himself, bought the flowers and asked me to make him a new bouquet based on my friend's taste and write an apology note for Diana Cavendish."

" _They are egging you."_ Loa's voice brought clarity for her. Soothing her inner turmoil, even as she told them the truth. _"They want to know if you would change your story if they keep asking persistent questions."_

Sucy wasn't even a suspect yet. But the way the coppers questioned her, it was like they were drilling her into a corner.

"I would provide you some camera footage to believe me, but we don't have them."

"Why not?"

"My mother finds it wasteful. Why would robbers steal flowers?"

"You don't keep a safe here?" he kept asking in the same accusing know-it-all tone.

"Just the register," Sucy said. "Ask the accountant for more details."

"I see." The Constable scribbled away.

"Anything else I can help you with?" Sucy asked.

"No, that will be all for now." The Constable tipped his hat. "Thank you, Miss Manbavaran."

"Happy to assist, Constable," Sucy said, joyful she didn't let anything incriminating slip.

Now that was done, Sucy can't wait to head home and play with her voodoo doll. In just about a few hours left, she can close the shop and be free of responsibilities. To truly enjoy her holidays before the weight of new stress comes from the new semester.

" _Don't let your capabilities to use voodoo magic drive you crazy."_ Loa warned, somehow a bit ominous since the doll hadn't once tried to stop her.

"As if I had any choice in the matter!"

Ever since that first moment, Sucy used her birthright legacy, her sanity had gone missing in action. Now, as she clock herself out, she found herself humming. She lugged her bag along the street, heading off to head home alone before Christmas.

These were strange days indeed.

* * *

  _ **Directly outside**_ Diana's chambers, the myriad security cameras continuously scanned the ground and air for any and all security threats. But today was calm, and there were no significant threats to be seen or heard.

The knock on the window is undeniably hers.

"You know," Diana contemplated, opening the windows and staring at the American who wore a sexy Santa Claus costume with the pure intention of intimidating her. "We have front doors."

"Ooh, scary." Amanda hopped off the window and inside Diana's room. She was also carrying brown sack, probably filled with gifts. "Hoe hoe hoe, Merry Christmas!"

Diana crossed her arms. "Does the thrill of getting past our security system excite you, Amanda? And pardon me, but why does it feel like the letter 'E' is at the end of every 'ho'."

"Yeah, yeah, you're welcome Diana." Amanda placed the heavy sack down on the floor with a heave.

"Also, do you not feel cold? Snow's ankle deep outside."

There was another knock from the window and Diana's jaw slackened at the sight of three other people walking in. They were carrying game consoles and two picnic baskets.

"Somehow," Amanda explained. "I knew you were going to be alone today and you have some other formal parties you should attend, I figured we could have a small party inside your room on Christmas Day."

Diana was shocked, to say at least. She had so many questions forming in her head but she was getting used to Amanda O'Neill's shenanigans that she might as well shrug it off. One good thing with Amanda's ceaseless bothering is that she is never too alone—not anymore.

Being surrounded by a friend who she shared her innermost fears and making sure she will never have to ponder on Andrew's death alone was truly a gift.

"Oh that sounds lovely," Diana playfully jabbed. "I reckon you forgot that I was invited to the party in my own room."

"Hi, Diana!" Lotte came up to her with a sweet beam. "Hope you don't mind me joining the bandwagon!"

"Miss Jansson," Diana exhaled with a small smile. "Pray tell, I am confused to see you hang out with the school's rebels."

"No food for you," Jasminka said, moving the picnic basket away. "Even on Boxing day."

Diana received a playful jab to her stomach from the shortest member of their rowdy group. "Alright, forgive me for calling you rebels." She groaned as she rubbed her stomach.

"We also didn't know we were heading here until two hours ago." Constanze proceeded to demonstrate her sign language. Diana had no qualms understanding, she picked up a couple of other languages. It also seemed that everyone in the room has understood.

"Easy with the punching little Cons," Amanda said. "You don't want to see Diana heave her guts out and I do mean, you don't."

"I see that you almost invited everyone. I cannot say I am quite displeased Akko's not here."

"Are you missing her, Diana?" Amanda sent her a shit-eating grin. "I'm sorry, but she's not here. Given Sucy's romantic overtures for Akko, both are unable to come here."

Diana's heart sank at that own statement, but small smiles crept everyone's faces that she couldn't read.

"NOOO!" a whine emerged from the window, accompanied with a bell chime. "Amanda's lying. I'm here! Sucy's not here though, she has other things to take care of so it's just me."

Atsuko Kagari was here. The girl in question was here—with her. But with four other people. Still, that was enough.

Akko was wearing a low cut brown dress with a headband horn on her hair. Around her neck was a choker with a golden bell. Her overall appearance was pretty much revealing and a little seductive when she crouched down to get inside.

Diana could feel the heat rise up to her cheeks. She turned away, hoping to dissipate it and for no one to notice the red tinge from her cheeks.

"I actually like robots," Akko said.

Diana had long tuned out to realize what their previous topic was about to lead to that conversation.

"I was overjoyed when I learned that Constanze was making a blueprint of a ship that could transform into a robot." Akko continued.

"She looks up to me." Constanze signs with a smile. She has packed a lot of smart and creativity into that diminutive frame.

"You mean down on you. On the account of you being vertically challenged." Amanda said before receiving a jab to the stomach by the small German.

The whole group laughed as they laid out the contents of the picnic basket on the coffee table.

Akko giggled to her heart's content while drifting to stand next to her. Diana was unsure if Akko was seducing her consciously or she was just getting turned on with whatever the girl does. Akko was angling her body so her collarbone jutted out. The sight of it was detrimental to her health.

"Speaking of looking up, I organized this party. Which means my plan involves getting the hell out of here once the clock strikes four in the afternoon so Lady Cavendish can prepare to go to her boring parties with the British elite." Amanda said.

"If I were to use a mundane colloquialism," Diana cleared her throat. "You are right and you should say it."

"HEY THAT'S A FUCKING MEME." Amanda hollered that Diana feared the maids of the estate heard it.

There was a loud notification that bounced off the walls of Diana's confined chamber. Akko fished for her phone in her pocket. Her face lined with worry as she read it.

"Why? What's wrong?" Amanda asked.

"Sucy's looking for me. I guess I have to head back."

Amanda groaned. "But you just got here! Tell her to come here if she wants to see you!"

"Sucy needs my help with something. I can't refuse."

"Boo!" Amanda said as everyone chimed in.

"Why don't you invite her here as well?" Lotte offered.

Akko looked at her strangely, her mood dissipated. Diana caught it, but it seemed everyone else was oblivious. Diana halted herself from nosing into other people's business; however, it proved to be difficult.

Diana stood next to Akko and adjacent to Lotte, her arms folded, watching them both. Although the morning sun was shining brightly, the atmosphere seemed dark between them.

The cool confidence Akko had displayed before Lotte spoke to her had evaporated. She now seemed much like the young girl that she was who had someone she had a quarrel with. Her red eyes were flicking nervously from face to face, and Diana thought she could detect a quivering about her lips. Lotte, on the other hand, is quite of an expert with hiding her emotions through her now foggy glasses.

"I'm really sorry guys," Akko said with the cutest pout ever. "I hope you guys forgive me. And please have fun!"

* * *

  _ **When it**_ happened, it hurt so much that she feared she might lose consciousness. The benefits of living with a cursed voodoo doll had its perks and she didn't know this was one of it.

Sucy let out a muffled yelp of pain as she spread some aloe vera gel to soothe her burns. The nasty burn glared at her, taunting her that home remedies won't relieve her. The anesthetic could only do much.

Having a demonic spirit inhabiting a doll could only do so much, and she needed more—more treatment and more care. She already popped two ibuprofens that Loa handed her, and soaked her arm in cold water for five minutes. Nevertheless, it wasn't enough.

It wasn't just her left arm that was unfortunate for being soaked in with the boiling oil. It was her left leg, her chest, and her hips too. Cavendish's hair got dissolved in the ruckus as well.

"SUCY!" She heard Akko shriek as she dropped everything and bolted upstairs. She must have taken the stairs three at a time and threw open the bedroom door, mentally prepared to handle almost any situation. Once she was able to wave the steam out of the way, she peered in.

Sucy was sitting on the floor, her back towards Akko. She was leaning forward and clutching her left side. She didn't seem to care that Akko had just burst in to witness her second accident for the day.

The cauldron and a beaker were on the floor and some of the oil and translucent purple liquid leaking onto the floor.

"Sucy? What's wrong?" Akko took a cautious step towards her, unsure what exactly was wrong.

Sucy didn't have the strength to turn around or speak. She merely used the last of her strength to order Loa to send a distressed text to Akko.

"Sucy?" Akko turned over to the doll who floated, seemingly unharmed. "Loa, what's wrong with Sucy?"

" _IT WASN'T MY FAULT. HELP HER, IDIOT!"_

Sucy's breath was ragged. "You can't hear Loa, so don't ask her stupid questions, Akko."

"Sucy what happened to you?" she winced at the sight of her injury. "Are those?"

"Second degree burns," Sucy admitted. "I reached for the bottled water you left for me and must have stretched too much. My left side hurt, and I guess I knocked my cauldron and my beaker when I pulled my arm back. And its contents burned me."

"Are you making some potion in the beaker?" she asked, observing the purple liquid. "It looks harmless, apart from the color. What was that inside the cauldron?"

"Boiling oil."

"WHAT?" Akko cried. "What were you trying to do?"

"I wanted to try punishing Cavendish again," Sucy admitted. "I wanted to inflict her pain, but I got burned instead. Damn her!"

" _ASK HER TO BRING YOU TO THE DOCTOR!"_ Loa's voice cut into the conversation like a razor.

"No," Sucy growled, feeling a flash of insult to her pride as Loa attempted to give her most ridiculous idea with an imposing glare. "Cavendish owns the hospital branches in Blytonbury and in Wedinburgh."

Akko then looked around and noticed the candles around Sucy forming a circle. "You have been busier these past few days."

"Yes," Sucy said, "Ramzan, my foster mother, is finally dead. I'm almost done with Blackwell's little reformist group."

"What did you do to her, Sucy?"

"I have no idea, and I don't care. It was Loa. It's her birthday gift for me."

Akko's facial features seemed like she wanted to scold her, but opted not to. "You should be careful, Sucy."

For a moment there, she swore she heard Professor Ursula's voice instead.

"I won't be unraveled," Sucy said with a dark smile. "I promise you. Cavendish and all of those people working on my case can't find a logical explanation for the killings so anything they have against me is unconstitutional and inadmissible to the court. They can't see a pattern. The most solution they could find is there are multiple murderers. They won't be able to unravel me."

"I just worry about you, Sucy."

"And I love you for that."

Akko gave Sucy some bottled water. The same bottle she kept providing her. It has been days since she first tasted it, but she found herself looking for it. There had been times when she kept drinking her own water, but her thirst couldn't be quenched. Nothing ever satisfy her anymore. She became quite picky and Loa didn't turn a blind eye.

Step by step, Akko helped Sucy down the hall to the bathroom for her to take a cold soak after that. With each step, Sucy seemed to gain a bit more confidence in her abilities.

Once they reached the bathroom, Akko paused. Sucy could tell the same thought processes were running through Akko's mind.

She knew Akko was feeling a tad awkward.

"You should not be ashamed, Akko." She said, firmly.

"I… know," Akko said. Pink hue spread in her cheeks, looking everywhere else but Sucy's eye. "It's only been a few weeks, Sucy. We should take things slow."

"I know it is a bit early in the relationship for you to be stripping me naked, but then again, for all intents and purposes, I had virtually no use of the left part of my body." She insisted.

"No, Sucy." Akko said, almost whispering, but she helped Sucy settle on the bathtub. "I can get you a towel and some shampoo and conditioner." She said, louder this time. "Do you think you'll be okay then?"

"You know I won't be," Sucy said murkily.

Akko left Sucy sitting on the edge of the rub and walked over to the cabinet by the sink. She got out an extra towel and two bottles, one each of shampoo and conditioner. She placed the towel on the edge of the sink and the shampoo and conditioner in the tub.

"I think I got everything. Anything else you need?"

Sucy looked around. "Yes, I need you to help me bathe."

"Sucy, I told you, I can't do that. Not now." Akko said a flash of annoyance masked her face, but her lips trembled as she whispered the words; her eyes were averted. "Your skin is burned, you didn't break any bones or lost any important muscles. If you want, you can toss out your old clothes when you undress. I can wash them today and give you something else to wear in the meantime."

"Don't you love me, Akko?" Sucy growled. "Can't you see I need you?"

Akko looked a little loss for words, but she managed to muster out some. "While you're showering, I'll do some chores and probably offer help to Chariot. She's preparing tonight for Christmas dinner. If you need me, send for Loa."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Hello again! It's been a while since I added an author's note. Thank you for your lovely feedback, as well as for the follows and favorites of all of the newcomers to the story.


	28. Chapter 28

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! I just want to inform everyone that the next update will be on December 17. Because side projects came up and I'll be busy during those weeks. Please continue to let me know your thoughts. For the meantime, here's your next chapter! Enjoy!

It has been merely a few minutes after Akko's departure and Diana had felt the coldness and the bleakness of her absence.

Diana thought her a delightful curiosity. The Japanese girl seemed to be leashed to a Filipino girl who seemed just as trapped by her. Diana knew exactly why Akko bewitched Sucy Manbavaran in such a way. No person of sound mind carried such obsession. And it cannot be love. No person capable of love acted the way Manbavaran does. Diana had only a small glimpse into the Filipino's heart, and they are enough to know that her heart is dead.

Akko appeared like an everlasting source of knowledge and mystery; when the enigma of life would be long revealed by the humanity, her heart would still conceal the secrecy of her nature, for Diana knew that something as pure and nonesuch as she was could never run out of puzzles that needed to be solved.

This was not love-at-first sight, she reckoned, albeit not having a clue about what it meant or implied. Diana was rather intrigued by Akko's manner of behaving, as it offered her a perpetual subject of debates and speculations. Diana saw Akko as the epitome of all the wild-goose chases; it nurtured her appetite for adventure and flow of adrenaline, it stimulated her mind and it gave her the opportunity to solve an enigma in times in which the every day threatened to stain her existence. Akko was just another jigsaw whose pieces she had to put back together in order to understand what she represented. Or was Akko more than that?

What was it to this girl that attracted her so much? Diana guessed that it had to do with the aura of secrecy that always seemed to convey her.

"… _Minister of Defense's son died of a heart attack this morning along with twenty other boys who died of various diseases. All of the young men were believed to be a part of a reformist group..."_ Constanze played the UKN news on her little robot as they all huddled close together.

"Can you turn it off?" Amanda asked as she flipped her cards. "The news is so depressing."

"Did you not hear what they said?" Diana asked, looking up from the card game she did not even want to play. "Louis Blackwell has died. One of our schoolmates."

"Probably deserved more than that." Constanze signed after she put down her cards. "Yes, Amanda told us everything." She added when Diana sent her a surprised look.

"Poor thing, we're not that close to him though," Jasminka said as she bit into a glazed donut. "With more students dead, this means another assembly when the new semester comes."

All these recent deaths merely intrigued her. It was not natural, especially because most of the victims were healthy young people. Then it was quite hard to conceal murder as heart attack or any other diseases, Diana knew only of one serial killer that had ever managed to pull it off, and that on a massive scale. But it could not be.

Other diseases were easy. Exposing them to a deadly virus or bacteria and cultivate them, but it could take years for it to work, given a person's immune system and healthcare. There were no outbreaks to boot.

Whatever dirty tricks she could conjure to give people heart diseases was unheard of and might not be possible. Unless the victim has a pacemaker.

"I would insist that all of you would treat it as white noise," Diana said, as she listened intently on all the names of the dead people.

" _On another news, one woman is missing after a plane hit the water while trying to land at the International airport in the Philippines archipelago on Sunday, December 26. The airline had said all passengers and crew had managed to evacuate the sinking aircraft safely, but they confirmed that one passenger was unaccounted for. Her name is Dr. Ophelia Adams."_

Diana's eyes widened when she heard that. Unaware she spaced out until somebody threw a candy at her. She shot the American with a heated glare. "What?"

"What's got you so riled up?" Amanda said, munching on a lollipop.

Diana contemplated whether or not to tell Amanda about Sucy Manbavaran's missing foster mother around the company of other people. She decided it will be worth mentioning later instead. "Nothing," she mused.

"Kids like ourselves shouldn't care about the news, especially not people dying," Jasminka said.

"It worries me though," Lotte said putting down a card. Her face was lined with concern. "Apparently Louis Blackwell had visited the doctor just a few days ago and then there had been absolutely nothing wrong with his heart."

"I'm sure there is a natural explanation, Lotte," Jasminka said in an attempt at comforting her. It might have worked too, had not the shy girl spoke.

"But all 21 of them dying from various diseases?" Lotte asked.

"Probably some new drug that hit the market," Amanda said, undecided how to play her cards. "Fafnir's arrest led to discovering that he was actually making new ones too. Maybe they were the first customers."

"I, for one, think it might be related to the Blytonbury Killer." Diana failed to stop her tongue from wagging.

The girls just stared at her. Amanda palmed her face as if Diana was crazy. Constanze actually looked worried for her. Lotte's face paled, her concern turning to anxiety. Jasminka slowly widened her almond-shaped eyes, sending an annoyed glance.

"That's like a correlation, Diana, I think you're finally losing it, but do explain why you thought of that," Amanda said.

"The Blytonbury Killer only targets boys who attend Luna Nova and was somehow able to conceal their deaths as suicides, right?" Constanze signed.

"Yeah, that was one of the great mysteries surrounding the killer. How did they really kill them?" Jasminka asked.

"I have a theory about it," Lotte said, peering curiously at Diana over her cards. "Do you want to hear?"

"Please."

"The Blytonbury killer only needed one murder weapon to kill the victims and hide the evidence. The murder weapon is still with them."

Diana's jaw twitched. "That sounds implausible."

"It doesn't necessarily have to be an object, Diana. Perhaps she's a great manipulator."

"You are not the only one who suggested manipulation—" Diana's voice faded as she staggered at the Headmistress' granddaughter. "Did you say she?"

"Sorry," Lotte pushed her glasses back up to the bridge of her nose, "but I believe the Blytonbury Killer is a female. And I believe that Andrew Hanbridge was a victim of our psychopath as well."

Amanda took a huge gulp as she tried to wedge her teeth together to stop from talking. Fearing, she might confirm or deny the truth that Diana wanted to hide.

"Don't be ridiculous!" Jasminka said, offering Happy Flavored popcorn to her. "The Blytonbury Killer only targets bullies, and Andrew Hanbridge doesn't fit the profile of the victims. I would believe that Louis Blackwell and his reformist group would be targeted, but disguising it as heart attacks seemed like that Japanese manga. It's not feasible unless the supernatural or paranormal is at its work."

"You have a point there, Jasna!" Amanda pointed a biscuit at her before taking a bite. "What say you, Diana?"

"I refuse to entertain such ideas," Diana said when she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. She hissed lowly in annoyance, figuring it would be notifications or pesky kids at school who got her number, but a smile danced on her lips when she saw it was Akko.

But as soon as she read the message, her smile turned upside down.

* * *

" _ **There, all**_ patched up," Akko said, but there was a tense silence.

Sucy heard a notification go off and Akko instantly checked her phone. She typed something away as Sucy slowly sat up, grimacing with the effort, and rubbed her eyes. "Thanks."

"How do your injuries feel, Sucy?" her beloved asked as soon as she pocketed her phone again.

Sucy eyed at the bandages in her burned areas. "They will heal."

"Will they scar?" Akko asked.

"Positively," Sucy said. "My doll offered to use a spell to make it heal quickly and scar-less."

"Did you say yes?"

"Of course." Sucy blinked hard. "Wouldn't want stupid inquiries from people at school."

"You have a point." Akko let out a sigh of relief. "I'm just glad you're alright."

Sucy noticed that Akko was smiling every now and then on her phone. Her beloved had been checking it every so often that it became an instant mood killer. She frowned at that and cleared her throat to get her attention.

Sucy scowled and looked away. "Akko, it's my birthday this Saturday. If you're planning any surprise, you better tell me now."

"Actually, Amanda and the rest are planning—"

"Please don't take this the wrong way, Akko, but I don't give a fuck about them." She interrupted with a grimace. "I want you."

Akko's tongue seemed to have turned heavy. She avoided Sucy's gaze and went back to texting on her phone in the middle of their conversation.

Sucy couldn't take it anymore. "Who are you texting?" she asked, snatching the phone away from her beloved.

The name surprised her. Her throat and chest constricted for a moment in unbearable pain, then fury exploded through her, washing away the anguish in waves of violent rage.

"I TOLD YOU TO STAY AWAY FROM CAVENDISH."

"I'm asking for advice, Sucy!" Akko reasoned out, grabbing her phone back. "Did you even read our conversation before you raised your voice at me?"

"Why are you asking her for advice? You could have asked anyone else! You can talk to me! I'm here, but you're talking to her!"

"You want me to do something I'm not ready to do yet! And I'm asking her how to go about it and how to make you see my point of view."

"Akko! I'm in pain!" Sucy said, breathing quickly. "If I got bitten by a stray dog, you would have no problem helping me undress to wash the saliva and blood out!"

"Those are completely two different circumstances!" Akko lashed back. "And don't you think the boiling oil is your karma? You have been killing people left and right and you don't even blink an eye!"

"I'M JUST SAYING, DON'T YOU DARE CHEAT ON ME!" The moment the words left her lips, Sucy knew she would regret it.

And regret she did. Akko's face contorted into an angry mess. "Oh, so when I text another friend about advice, it's cheating and unforgivable but if you kissed another girl because I'm not home with you to fulfill your needs, it's a mistake and you won't do it again?"

"I don't trust Cavendish, Akko. I trust you, I'm just angry you went all the way to text her about this dilemma when I'm over here and you can just talk to me."

"Can't you control your insufferable jealousy, Sucy?"

"No! What's mine is mine!" Sucy roared.

"So I am your territory now?" Akko chuckled sarcastically.

"I don't mean it like that, Akko!"

"Didn't you ever noticed, it's getting hard for me to talk to you?" Akko's jaw was clenched, and she was shuddering in her efforts to hold back her sobs. "If I say something wrong, you can just use your witchy magic at me. You even killed your foster mother, Sucy. What's to say you won't do it to me and Chariot?"

"My foster mother is a different matter, Akko. You know how much she abused me. And besides, I didn't kill her. Loa did. It's her birthday gift for me this Saturday."

"Why do you try to validate your murders, Sucy? I understand you would want to kill them. But their murders are in no way righteous! You're a voodoo obsessed lunatic with no emotion whatsoever. You tell me you love me, you tell me you need no fixing, but Sucy, do you even know what love is?"

"Of course I do—"

"Yes, you don't need me to fix you," Akko didn't let her finish. "But don't you think there are a lot of things to unwrap? Things that need fixing? Can't you see it Sucy? You need to fix a lot about yourself. I know you are a psycho, but this is too much for me! It's like you and I both have a karmic debt that needs to be paid before we can be truly happy together."

Sucy's tongue became heavy with dread.

"Sucy, do you even know you won't take no for an answer? It's hard to please you! You know what, I never knew you'd be like this. Once we got together, I want to call it quits."

"Akko, please don't leave me—if you leave me... I... I will—"

"—what? Kill me? Will you kill me, Sucy? I should have broken up with you when I caught you kissing that pretty girl. But no! I listened to reason! You didn't! I don't want this anymore, Sucy. I have a life, I have dreams, but it's hard to go for both when you need me to fix you. I don't want this anymore, I want to break up with you."

Rage flared up in Sucy's belly. With a snarl, she swung hard. Her punch caught the Akko full in the mouth, snapping her head back and throwing her to the ground. Sucy couldn't comprehend why she did it or where the thought of it came from but the moment she saw Akko fly from impact, she panicked.

Akko immediately crumpled into a sobbing heap on the floor, she opened and closed her mouth a couple of times before she stood up tremulously.

Sucy wanted to go to her and kiss away the tears, but she was the one who had put them there in the first place. She clenched her fists.

"Don't be such a possessive ass. Don't come to the Christmas dinner anymore. I don't want to see you." She snapped, driving her elbow into Sucy's burn free ribs as she stalked by.

Tears brimmed in the eyes and spilled down Sucy's cheeks. The agony of it had almost knocked her unconscious. "May I at least know why you're breaking up with me?"

"You're unstable, Sucy." Akko flat out stated. Her shoulders began to shake. Her lips were cut from the blow she gave her. "If you're angry about that, go ahead and kill me. What's stopping you from doing so, huh? What's stopping you from controlling me?"

Sucy's entire body flared. She wanted to reach her, grab her and never let her go. She wanted to do so. The only thing stopping her was her love for Akko. The innate fear she might break the poor girl and cause her to look at her with horror filled eyes.

The voodoo doll had been Sucy's salvation. She needed to do it so she can be with Akko. She just had to. She can't lose her. Sucy will do anything. Steal, kill, and humiliate their enemies. She can and she will.

"Please, even if we broke up, can we at least stay friends?" Sucy asked. "I promise I will not interfere with your romantic pursuits."

"If you say so," Akko said, unconvinced. She wiped the blood trailing from her lips with her own wrist.

"Please, don't leave me here!" Sucy's hands clutched at Akko's shirt, the knuckles white against her skin.

Akko pried off her hands off her and stepped aside, shoving the door fully open as she did and walked away.

As soon as Akko left, the tears were mechanical. Coming out simply because they have been held back too long. "I hate Cavendish. I hate her so much it hurts to even think about it."

It made her stomach flutter, her breath unsteady.

"I'm so sick of seeing her nearly every day at school."

Every time Sucy thought about her failed relationship with Akko, she laughed. For once, Diana Cavendish had won. For once, she had made Sucy weak, defenseless.

She hoped in vain that Cavendish is still suffering from the guilt of Andrew's death. If she moved on with him, she can kill new ones.

"I think my enemies got what they wanted. They created chaos in my life. They got my lover hating me for wanting to be loved. Why can't she just take my side?"

" _You were meant to be alone."_ The doll whispered, reveling on her misery in a way.

"No, shut the fuck up."

"You don't deserve happiness. You lost your soul when you killed all those people. You are forsaken. No salvation shall come for you."

"No, that's not true at all." Sucy replied weakly, somehow she didn't believe what she was saying either."

"You don't deserve her."

"No, please. She's all that I have."

Her heart ached more so than the oil burn incident she had earlier.

" _She's right in a way."_ Loa tuned in with her unnecessary comments. _"Your emotional depth is really hard to reach because you buried it so deep to feel good about yourself—to continue as a murderer. Don't worry about it, Sucy. Your ancestor's never received, romantic love. You are a part of this curse."_

"And you told me just now you bitch!" Sucy grabbed Loa and hurled the doll towards the wall once more. "Was it worth it to watch me suffer?"

Loa stayed connected where she collided, Sucy could see its stitches widen into a snicker.

" _Yes,"_ the doll chuckled, _"very much. You should have known that there will be curses brought about if you inherit me but I failed to mention the curse to you for a reason, Sucy. I only want you to experience it firsthand to believe it. You might have thrown me to the washer. It's all in vain for me though, you still threw me somewhere."_

* * *

 

" _ **Wait, so**_ you believe that Sucy somehow killed her foster mom during that flight?" Detective Inspector Croix said.

It has been days after the surprise party inside her chamber back at the Cavendish mansion and she had shared the information she gained from the news to the Detective Inspector working on the Blytonbury Killer case.

"I believe the desire to kill members of one's family—blood or foster—takes root in frustration that gets ignored and builds up," Diana said, her face was neutral as if she was reciting something she memorized for an oral recitation. "Repeated abuse, anger, mistreatment, whether sexual, physical or morale. If unchecked, this grows in intensity and can push some children way beyond the limits."

"Yeah," Amanda said. "Daughters of dysfunctional families really sometimes would kill their mothers or fathers. Trust me, if I weren't sane in the head I would kill my old folks."

Detective Inspector Croix then perched her elbows on top of the desk. "And you thought it was wise to share that thought to the police?"

Diana's brows knitted in concern for her. "How come?"

"My folks and I weren't really emotionally close, but you knew that, don't you, Diana? You knew I'm a rebel from an influential family."

"I thought it was the pressure that made you consider it."

"Eh, it's among the few things."

Wangari spoke loud and clear on her ongoing recording. "Despite the numerous reports of family killings in the last few years, the causes and motive behind such aberrant behavior remain unclear. Family killings occur mostly in the middle class. They often seem brought on because parents perhaps want to make up for some failure of their own, put pressure on their kids and project their own ambitions on them. If the parents then add verbal or physical abuse to this pressure, it is a sure recipe for tragedy. Young people in such a situation who are searching for their own start seeing their family—or their parents—as nothing more than machines that stand in the way of their own fulfillment."

"Are you psychoanalyzing?" Diana asked.

Detective Inspector Croix sensed the atmosphere and chimed in to divert the energy elsewhere. "School's starting soon. Are you all ready for the new semester?"

There was a chorus of answers from the three of them.

"Have you interviewed Sucy Manbavaran about the bouquet?" Diana asked her.

"My men have," Detective Inspector Croix said. "I haven't interviewed her myself or else my position as a DI will be compromised. Her only statement was she was annoyed he was there, to begin with just to buy you red flowers that she had to arrange herself. The young man didn't seem to like any of the premade bouquets available."

"Andrew sounded like he was stalling," Diana commented.

"I noticed that too, but what would he be stalling about?"

Diana inhaled a lungful of air and buried her head in her palms. "I have no idea anymore."

"Is that all?" Wangari inquired.

The older woman went over the report. "One constable even noted that she was far too happy to help."

"Some people have no difficulty cooperating with the police," Wangari stated.

"As one of my men have said... she's far too helpful. So another constable was sent to her."

"And?"

"Miss Manbavaran was still helpful, but her facial expression was too indignant. She said she didn't know what kind of flowers Diana liked and requested that she should make it the way Miss Atsuko Kagari wanted it."

"A blatant lie," Diana gasped. "Andrew knew what I wanted. He was the one who helped Frank to give me flowers."

"So wait, who's lying?" Amanda cut in. "Sucy for saying that? Or Andrew?"

"I reckon I should get to the bottom of this."

"How?"

"I shall befriend Miss Sucy Manbavaran myself."


	29. Chapter 29

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Happy Holidays everyone, sorry it took me quite a while to update. And especially on a heartbreaking note! New chapter's here and I hope will enjoy it the same way all your comments ands theories about what's going to happen next has been really interesting to read! And as a gift for all of you next week, I'll update twice! Both on the 24th and the 2th

Sucy did nothing but cry. Even on her birthday. She avoided the Night Fall books Lotte left like the plague.

She cried because there was nothing that she could do to mend her heart again. She cried because for the first time she had trusted her heart to someone, Akko had broken it into so many pieces that merely attempting to put it back together would bruise her even more. She had never felt like this before, not even when she grew up among demons disguising as angels.

Even when she turned 18 and the confirmation of her foster mother's death, she was choking with air. Her lungs did not seem to be able to work properly and the hands did not want to stop shaking anymore. She could not think at that point and it appeared that merely walking would prove to be problematic with all that pain numbing her body. She placed her hands on her chest and pressed hard on it, hoping it would ease the hurting but it didn't. Nothing could ever restore what he had taken from her that night. He had robbed her of her peace, of her hope—of everything that had kept her strong all this time.

Akko had promised things, and she had broken every single of those vows, like cranes of paper. Sucy knew she had allowed herself to love an illusion, for Atsuko Kagari was not the girl she thought she was.

Unless Akko was being pulled away. Akko was like a child, drawn to sparkling things. That was how she came to idolize Shiny Chariot. The Magician was brighter than any star in the night. And now, Akko is being pulled away by a certain golden-haired girl.

She hissed at the fact that she lost Cavendish's hair when it got melted in the burning oil.

Akko continued to avoid her when she didn't sit next to her during Philosophy. It was their only class together and Sucy could feel heart erode like the sand inside an hourglass overtime.

Sucy saw the girl partially to blame to her breakup with Akko. Inviting Lotte Jansson to her life was a guaranteed card to send her life through a living hell. Sucy observed her from afar and stalked after her when the Finnish girl was heading towards the cafeteria.

Sucy was reaching for a strand of Lotte's hair amidst the commotion when suddenly, the Finnish girl grabbed the discreet hand, stopping her.

"If you think you can walk away with my hair, I think you're mistaken."

Her heart skipped a beat, it took her moments to adjust for the surprise and fear to settle in. "What are you talking about?"

Lotte's features turned sharp as she leaned in. Despite the numerous students crowding the hallway, she was certain that no one would pay attention to their conversation. _"An owner of a dark doll would always feel uneasy within the presence of a light doll."_

"W-what?"

"Great lie and a great act when you've already established an indignant persona."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Sucy said abruptly, pulling her arm free from her grasp.

"Don't push it, Sucy," Lotte said, measuring her words. "I do think it's time for us to have a little chat, shall we?" She started to take slow steps backward. "I'll meet you on the New Moon Tower in a few minutes."

Sucy relapsed into an uneasy silence as she watched the girl disappear in the faces of the crowd.

Loa was reveling in the few seconds of peace before all of her fears came careening back with full force. _"Don't go to her, Sucy. Not when you're truly alone with her."_ Loa's voice was so stricken that it made Sucy question not only Lotte's behavior but her doll's as well.

"I feel compelled to," Sucy whispered as she strode off the other direction to head off to one of Luna Nova's tower.

Sucy climbed the flight of stairs on her own pace and reached the balcony area where Lotte had been waiting for her. The four-eyed girl leaned against the balustrade, her eyes spread over the overlooking balcony of the whole school and the Arcturus forest that surrounded it.

It made Sucy wonder for a while if she could get away with pushing the Finnish girl off the rails.

"The school is beautiful isn't it?" Lotte respired in awe. "Stately trees and architecture from the golden era."

"You didn't make me climb all those stairs so we can have another date," Sucy said, a low growl escaped her throat.

"I see," Lotte scoffed. "You want me to get on with it fast." She averted her gaze from the wonderful scenery towards Sucy and her blue eyes seemed to pierce her. "I know you're the Blytonbury Killer, Sucy. And you can chill for I'm not going to reveal your crimes to the law."

"If you were right about your hunch, I must say you're definitely more stupid than Cavendish."

"I am the exact opposite of stupid, Sucy. I know what I'm doing." She said, pushing her glasses back up to her nose. "I know about witchcraft."

The moment she said it, Sucy was gripped with an inexplicable tremor. The girl who stood before her possessed great power, and so her presence was always received with a small undercurrent of fear. That was why Loa always disliked the idea of being near her.

Helpless to stop herself, she took Sucy's relatively calm response as an invitation to spill everything. "If I did present you and your doll to the cops, there would be an uproar. The living witches would never want to relive another witch hunt, Sucy. And if I only present you without the doll, I would be considered a lunatic and could face charges against obstructing justice or by you for oral defamation, perhaps."

Sucy's jaw strained, as she gave it a lot of thought.

"You need not to be scared," Lotte reassured. "I'm not here to get you imprisoned. Just here to tell you to slow down."

"Are you a witch too?" she asked, tersely.

Lotte pressed her lips together as if measuring her words before she spoke. "I suppose. I can talk to spirits, which means I can hear the soul residing inside your voodoo doll."

 _"Well bitch,"_ Loa said. She had been imitating Lotte's speeches in a bitchy manner for the past few minutes.

Lotte giggled before she pressed her lips together again, softer this time. "Your doll sounds a lot like my self-esteem actually so it's pretty easy to ignore everything it said about me."

Sucy had never thought she would be embarrassed by Loa's witty comebacks and rude comments, and she felt inclined to do something about it.

"Sorry, about that. I know you heard all the mean things she said about you."

"It's actually my first time meeting another witch that possess a talking voodoo doll," Lotte said, retrieving a knitted white yarned doll from her pocket. "With you in the picture, that makes the two of us. Here's mine. Faerie speaks too, but I'm afraid you can't hear him because he really doesn't talk."

Sucy inched closer to observe it. "Faerie?"

"That's what I call my doll."

"And you gave him a gender."

"He likes to identify as male."

"Ah..."

"So Sucy, your doll is for puppeteering?" Lotte asked as she played with hers as a toddler would.

"Mostly." She crossed her arms at the fact their conversation went from solemn to small talk.

"Mine is more on needlework."

"Oh, I use needles sometimes."

"I didn't mean it like that."

"Then how?" Sucy quipped.

"I'm not telling you all my secrets," Lotte said, now cradling her doll onto her arms like it was a small infant.

"Are you here to capture me like some sort of witch police?"

"Not really, it's not my job to regulate fellow witches," Lotte said. "As I said, I'm not here to imprison you. You do what you want."

_"Ask her what magic culture she possesses."_

"I practice European white magic, and sometimes Asian white magic, I'm trying to broaden you see." Lotte said, surprising both of them, causing her to before adding. "You forget facts easily, don't you?"

 _"Well…"_ Loa said. _"I'm not used to other people hearing me asides my human."_

"You just call Sucy your human?" Lotte placed a finger on her cheek thoughtfully. "That's interesting. So is it true? Were you killing all those boys because you're some sort of psycho?"

"Do you think I'm crazy too?"

"I am aware of your condition," Lotte said.

"That means I'm in good shape for an insanity defense, right?" Sucy bantered.

"I'm not a lawyer," Lotte said, frankly. "Although I can be an essential witness to your case. If a magic council exists; however, I know you're doomed."

"So there isn't a magic council?"

"There are only a few of us out there," Lotte said. "12 remaining families of witches left, driven to extinction. There were more of us before, but the families combined, making them a little powerful. A witch's magic is supposed to be buried with the last member of the family line."

"The Janssons are the 12th then?"

"Yes, but witches descend from the maternal line," Lotte clarified. "And my family adopts the husband's surname to make it a little harder to keep track of us."

"What do you know about the Manbavarans?"

"They are the 13th family and all the daughters never receive any holy matrimony. Your maternal line never cared for men. They just exist as some sort of reproduction means."

"I think that explains why my last name means 'witch'. I've also been told that my ancestor would have sex on her victims before she kills them."

Lotte giggled some more. "If I were to be completely honest, Sucy. I thought the Manbavaran line died with Sinag."

A flash of recognition etched on Sucy's face. "You know about my real mother?"

"From stories," she said. "It was said she died, childless. But to see that you wound up in the orphanage meant she never really wanted the world to know about you."

Sucy's head was spinning. She felt like she was outside her own body, watching the scene but unable to stop it. All the anger and frustration she felt at herself and her mother went over the charts. "Well, it's all for nothing. I still ended up as a serial killer and I made myself known to those other 11 families left."

Lotte watched her for a while, to see if her anger would lead to something or she could stay calm. When Sucy managed to control her fury barely, Lotte proceeded. "How did you end up with your mother's doll after all?"

_"Loa revealed herself to me during a heavy rain by the road."_

"That's... curious." Lotte pondered for a while before all her face hardened in all its gravity. "You should be wary, Sucy. They are sending big enough cats amidst the pigeons."

 _"Why are you being so kind to Sucy when you're the one who used a love spell on her?"_ Loa remarked.

"I have my own reasons," Lotte said, vaguely with a sweet smile.

"I would appreciate if you stop it," Sucy said, refraining herself from reaching out to touch the girl's face. "Because of you, my girlfriend broke up with me."

"Yeah, I'm sorry about that." Her face fell into deep guilt, ashamed for what she did. "I really didn't know you were taken. I thought it would be nice if we combine our families together."

Sucy's visible eye widened at the blatant proposal. Her cheeks then flushed a little. She looked away, trying to escape the girl's eyes. "The only way you can make it up to me is when you explain everything to Akko."

Lotte's eyes widened in fear. "And risk me as a witch? No!"

"Akko will understand, she knows about me."

"I'll try then," Lotte said. "It's weird enough we hang out in the same circle."

"You hang with the same circle now?"

"Yeah, Amanda introduced me to her. We're a little fine if you're wondering. Just awkward."

"Understandable," Sucy said, nodding. "It's that damn Brit's fault, to begin with. I so can't wait to kill her. I tried multiple times, but she's just… alive."

"Diana's too strong, too smart and too damn stubborn to get herself killed," Lotte said, surprisingly unbothered by it. "And I've seen how your ex-girlfriend seems to be close to her."

Sucy balled her first. A low growl escaped her throat.

"A friendly suggestion for you, Sucy," Lotte whispered as if anyone could hear them despite their location. "You don't kill her. Only strip her of her power. That way, she's out of your life for good."

"How?" she snarled. "My puppet is hospitalized. Using more magic strains my health."

"You don't need some of her hair to do that you know."

"Oh," Sucy said, embarrassed. Sometimes, being a witch made her forget there are completely non-magical methods to bring about an enemy down. "Do you know personally know other witches from those other 11 families?"

"Yes, it just so happens that there are a few near us, but it's not my right to tell you who they are. They will reveal herself to you if they wish to. The way I lead you to me."

* * *

 _ **Ever since**_ her talk with the other witch, Sucy never had another concrete conversation in her life. Asides from recitations in class.

One week back at Luna Nova and by this time, she was regretting her decision to come back and complete her education. Sucy found herself as the school's latest and greatest social pariah. Ever since Akko broke up with her, she was all alone.

Without Akko, Amanda and her friends don't have any reason to speak to her. Sucy knew it was all her fault, to begin with, but then again, she doesn't give a fuck about other people.

She only wanted Akko.

 _"She broke up with you."_ Loa's taunting voice reminded her again.

Sucy knew that and it still hurt. Her burns had healed and she used a spell to remove the scars that may linger.

After the breakup, being ignored by Akko was the best that she could hope for, but the fact that Akko went all her way to hang out with Cavendish, broke her heart into tiny million pieces.

And she probably deserved it, too; that much she could admit to herself. She had been petty and vicious and self-important and had reveled in other people's misery and embarrassment.

There was nothing she could do about her karma.

_"Of course you can make her take you back. I am a voodoo doll, after all, Sucy."_

Sucy swore she could burn Loa for that idea.

When Sucy had her nose buried in a Chemistry textbook, a thud sounded and her table shook as a heavy bag was dropped deliberately onto its surface.

_"You speak harshly for your mortal heart is wounded."_

Sucy had immediately tensed, fingers itching to pinch her voodoo doll, but when she looked up, she froze upon seeing Cavendish pulling out a chair at her table. She sat stupefied, watching as once settled, the Brit pulled what looked to be homework from her bag and set to work.

Cavendish met her eyes in acknowledgment and said with a polite and perfunctory, "Miss Manbavaran."

Sucy replied with the first thing that came to her mind, too bewildered to bother filtering her words. "What the fuck do you think you're playing at, Cavendish? Akko's not with me."

Cavendish didn't even look up at Sucy's outburst.

Instead, her lips quirked and, eyes trained on her work, she replied, "I'm doing my Advance Chemistry calculations, Manbavaran. I know you take it—I was thinking maybe we could do our homework together, that is—but I would think it was obvious enough."

Sucy lunged forward to snatch the paper away, but Cavendish had been prepared for that. She grabbed one of the many hardcovers from her bag and with a swift downward stroke; she rapped Sucy's knuckles sternly. The latter withdrew her hand with a yelp and scowled, cradling her smarting fist against her chest.

"Ow! What the fuck, Cavendish?"

The girl in question had already placed the sheets of paper back on the table and picked up her pen, resuming her previous efforts. She was quiet for a moment before she responded.

"I do not fancy people touching my work, Manbavaran," Cavendish said calmly. "Something else I would have thought to be intuitive."

Sucy watched Cavendish write, feeling so flustered and irate that her hands began to tremble. "Piss off, Cavendish," she snapped, but again, the Brit just gave that infuriating half-smile. "I mean it!" Sucy snarled in a low hiss. "Go away."

Cavendish ignored her, taking her time with a line of equations until finally, in a light tone, she replied, "You know, I do not think I will. I rather like this table, much more secluded than my usual one." For the first time, she glanced up at Sucy's flushed face. "I hope you do not mind, do you?"

Sucy stared at her incredulously. "Oh no, of course, I don't mind," she snarled, filled with sarcasm. "I always tell people to fuck off when I want them to join me."

"Fantastic," Cavendish quipped. "Though," she added pensively, "I do believe you said 'piss off', not 'fuck off'. But same difference, I suppose." Cavendish gave her a brief, mischievous grin before turning her attention back to her work.

Sucy gaped, her eyes wide with disbelief.

"Close your mouth, Miss Manbavaran. Are you luring flies to feed your pet frog?"

Sucy gave up, before reddening when she realized how petulant she must look. Again, Cavendish's focus stayed on her work, but the corners of her mouth were twitching and her attention on her homework looked suspiciously determined.

They sat in silence for a moment as Sucy tried to bore a hole through Cavendish's forehead with her eyes. When she got no reaction, she sighed. "Okay, Cavendish, I'll bite. What do you want?"

The Brit looked up, wry humor animating her features. "I just want to do my work at this table." She told Sucy calmly. "You looked to be doing the same a few moments ago. I suggest you get back to it."

Sucy stared at her. "Look, Cavendish, if this is some kind of misguided attempt at altruism, you can take it and sho—"

"I have no death wish, Miss Manbavaran," Cavendish interrupted. "But I know I have a bounty for my head. You are not my latest charity case, believe me. I have my own reasons for this." She waved her hand, gesturing vaguely between them.

 _"Yes, you got Sucy right where you want her."_ Loa chuckled.

Sucy mulled that over, still skeptical. "What could you possibly have to gain by associating with me, Cavendish?"

"That's my business," Cavendish said haughtily.

Sucy leaned forward to her, Cavendish noticed her imposing glare. They began seeing each other. The Brit was a fighter. She had washed every blood on her hands but the smell still lingered. Sucy smirked at that. Diana Cavendish is an open book to her, with a beautiful and thick front cover but its pages frail like onion skin and had the certain smell of an old book—indicating it's near death.

Cavendish noticed with a distracted clarity that Sucy was wearing a black sweater that hung off her wrists as if she had lost weight, and that the nails on her hands were bitten down to the quick.

Sucy didn't like that at all. She began speaking slowly but surely to get her message across. "State your business, or I will be forced to coerce it out of you. And I promise you, I have the means."

That did the trick. Cavendish spilled the beans even without the use of her magic. "I want you to become part of the Student Council."

Sucy blanched at the notion. "Y-you want me to run for vice president?"

"Yes," Diana perched her elbow on the table's surface as she rested her pretty face on her knuckles. "You and I both share the same ideals for the school, right?"

Sucy quipped an eyebrow. "I don't like you."

"You see?" Cavendish chuckled. "We now have something in common."

"Self-deprecation isn't a good flavor on you Cavendish, you should stop."

"Oh?" Diana inched closer to her, whispering. "Do tell me what flavor do you see on me?"

 _"There's tension in this table, and it's the murderous kind."_ The sentient doll mused. _"Do it again."_

"But," Cavendish continued. "Might I point out that my sitting with you is not going to make your situation any worse?"

"How can you possibly know that?" Sucy snapped. "What if they think I've coerced you or something?"

"Then I'll set them straight," Cavendish replied, and she held Sucy's glare, unruffled. She leaned forward slightly, her luminous blue eyes intent. "I won't tolerate them being idiots in my defense, especially when their efforts are unwarranted."

"Who says their efforts would be unwarranted, Cavendish?" Sucy rebuked, her voice cool. "Weren't you being fawned over by your own lapdogs? But you never told them to shut up before. What happened?"

Cavendish didn't even hesitate. She just sat back and shook her head with a sad, little smile. "Character growth," she said quietly. "It comes with trauma."

"My condolences," Sucy tried her best to be empathetic. "But you still haven't answered why you want me to run for vice. Are you sure you even want that?"

"I do, Manbavaran," she said quietly, "because I know that you can't afford to make an enemy of me. Not in the current state. Which is the reason why you have not once insulted me during this conversation... You and I are far more mature than getting offended on curse words"

Sucy frowned, looking down at her Chemistry textbook without actually seeing it.

Cavendish was right, whether Sucy wanted to admit it or not; she had enough experience in relationships and political maneuvering thanks to her years in the Orphanage to understand that. If she plucked even one frizzy hair from Cavendish's cabbage mane or uttered a single slur in her direction, she would have a horde of angry Cavendish supporters to deal with. Hell, not just the entire school—but Akko would turn against her, even more so than she already had.

At least right now, Akko's avoidance of her was because of miscommunication, and thus considerably less hurtful than they could be than if Akko resented her because of her cheating and voodoo usage.

And it wasn't as though Cavendish herself didn't have teeth. When she looked back up at Cavendish, she'd made her choice. She gave the girl a curt nod.

"A truce, then?" Cavendish suggested the picture of nonchalance.

Sucy's eyebrows lifted in surprise. "That's going a bit farther than sitting at a table without trying to aggravate one another, Cavendish," she pointed out.

"Yes, it is," the Brit agreed. She rolled her eyes, a spark of impatience finally marred her collected air. "Just take the offer, Miss Manbavaran, even if it's just to spite them all."

Sucy couldn't help but smirk at the idea where she's in control of the school. Although it could mean that she might become Cavendish's new shadow, it could mean that she can get closer with Cavendish and watch her become more tormented up closer. She never considered keeping her enemies closer until now.

This would be a once in a lifetime opportunity to watch her suffer once she would murder the annoying Brit girls who follow her around. That image in mind, she reached a hand out to Cavendish, donning her best sneer. "All right, Cavendish," she answered. "You have yourself a truce."

"Excellent," she agreed, all chipper as she accepted the hand, sporting her perfect Cheshire grin.

As Sucy she watched Cavendish return to her equations before bringing her own gaze down onto the page of her tome that detailed the chemical characteristics of Mercury, and how lethal of a poison it is, Sucy suddenly couldn't help but wonder what she'd gotten herself into.

"It is high time we refer to each other in first name basis, don't you think?" Cavendish asked.

Sucy snorted. "Why?"

"Oh come on, have we not become the best of friends?"

Sucy pursed her lips and nodded. "Good point, Dee-yuh-nah."

"What?" she asked, baffled by the name.

"Dee-yuh-nah," Sucy said slowly this time but still filled with a heavy accent.

"Why make fun of me, Sucy?" she crossed her arms.

"I'm not. I am pronouncing your name, Jana."

Diana gaped. She pronounced it quite fast that the words became a blur and she could just hear a different name. "No, not like that."

 _"Try to get information out of her, Sucy,"_ Loa whispered like a hissing snake through a creaking door.

"You know..." Sucy began. "I've always wondered how you're able to juggle school with your duties and part-time sleuthing."

"Pardon?"

"Come on, it's no secret to people like me. You've by now, demonstrated an aptitude for the logical crime detection, I know for a fact that you're helping the local police, despite what doesn't come out in LNN papers."

"I paid Wangari handsomely to omit my names there. And to answer your previous question, I sometimes wonder that myself."

"I know your type in movies and TV shows all the time," Sucy said, a wicked smile slowly forming on her lips. "Your investigations show up at crime scenes to steal all the credit, smugly interfere with the investigation, offend the local police and irritate the viewer."

Diana shot her the most ominous glare Sucy had never known she's capable of.

"I'm not talking about you," she shrugged. "That's just the story I happened to see."

"At least those protagonists don't have a lot of close friends dying on them."

"I beg to differ."

Diana was paralyzed. She doesn't know what to do. Her mind's not wired to respond to it properly, and thus she is weakened, easy to attack.

"Jana," Sucy started, waiting until the other girl would finally look up and meet her gaze before continuing so she could lure her into a trap. "What would you say about getting out of here and come over to my flat so we can discuss this shitty campaign without having to worry about getting banned from the library for the rest of the year?"

Diana stared at Sucy before she shot a flabbergasted brow upwards. Loa was also taken off-guard by the suggestion.

"I would say let's go."


	30. Chapter 30

Walking around the perimeter of Sucy's room, Diana let her fingers idly trail over everything. The walls, the scattered posters adorning aforementioned walls, the multiple pots of plants, the bookcases, her desk, her computer, and her various knickknacks collected over time.

Diana looked around to make sure there wouldn't be any indication to show that Sucy Manbavaran snapped and took her there to finally kill her.

And for the good part, there was none.

She can rest at ease.

Sucy had been observing her through the crack on her bedroom door. A fantasy played out inside her head as she would reach out for the Brit's delicate neck. She couldn't decide whether she wanted it to be quick and painless with a snap or slow and painful. Watching the agony as the life was sucked out of her eyes.

"Here," Sucy entered the room after she got out of her reverie, carrying two mugs. "I made some Taho, earlier. It's best enjoyed cold."

Diana stared at the contents when she took it. "What concoction did you just brew?"

"How dare you, it's just tapioca seeds, soft tofu, and brown melted sugar!" Sucy said, drinking from her own mug.

"Just tell me if you don't like it, I have another one that has strawberry jam in it, maybe you'll like it better."

Diana slurped some of its contents and the way she swallowed the cold soft tofu was truly an experience of a lifetime. "Oh no, thanks. This is quite good."

Sucy's lips slowly curved in a smirk when she placed her voodoo doll on top of her desk.

 _"What are you doing?"_ Loa hissed. _"Flaunting me in front of her?"_

She knew the Brit won't think it's uncharacteristic of her. And besides, it was clear as day that the girl doesn't believe in the paranormal. Sucy could be bold in front of her, throw all the telltale signs, help the detective sleuth her way into catching her, yet Diana Cavendish's close-mindedness will obscure the truth in plain view.

Sucy set a foot sideward to face the girl once more. A slow smirk wormed its way to her mouth as she imagined the cold lifeless body on her trash. "Let's start."

Sucy still hadn't the faintest idea why Diana wanted to spend time with her at all. That first day when she had come up to Sucy at the table, it was clear that the Brit still wasn't the fondest of her. While she'd been perfectly agreeable—eerily so, in fact—there had been a subtle kind of loathing in Diana's eyes, the type born from years of rival enmity. But even in the short amount of time that they had been spending together, that loathing had diminished, softened into something tamer. Sometimes, it even disappeared for a little while.

But that didn't mean that they liked each other. If anything, Sucy seemed to tolerate Diana and vice versa. Diana was determined to be civil but not go beyond that. They still sniped at one another when they looked up from their work for long enough to speak, but there was usually a careful kind of lightness to it, an understanding on both of their parts to not go too far, to respect the truce. And though she still didn't understand Diana's motives, Sucy was sure as hell she was about to rock the boat.

"How's the consulting with the Scotland Yard?" Sucy asked absentmindedly as if for the sake of conversation.

"The truth still eludes me," Diana said. Sucy waited for more explanation but the girl offered no more than that.

Sucy stared back at her work and gritted her teeth, opting to focus on it instead when the girl spoke.

"I heard Akko broke up with you."

Sucy scoffed. "What else did you hear?"

"Is it true you cheated on her?"

Sucy could hear Loa laughing at her from across the room. She swore under her breath. "I didn't cheat on her. I could never. She's the only one important to me."

Diana searched for her eyes and Sucy was forced to stare right back at them. "I prefer sins of omission than outright lies." She said as she held her gaze. "You're lying and I don't know why, but unfortunately a more pressing mystery demands my attention."

"What could be more pressing than your human nature to gossip?"

"I heard about your foster mother," Diana whispered, but the room felt like a bomb had been dropped. "My condolences about Dr. Adams. How are you coping with it?"

She couldn't say she didn't expect the question to be thrown her way. Sucy had been waiting for it. So she had practiced her line quite too well, even if it wasn't that far from the truth. "There's nothing really much to cope there is? She and I weren't as close as many would have thought."

"Is that the reason why you chose not to garner sympathies and presence from school and the social media?"

"Why?" she blinked before her eye narrowed into a slit. "Are you thinking it was possible that I had to do anything with my missing foster mother?"

"I am merely suggesting that her unfortunate accident was certainly in suspicious circumstances."

"Call it what you will then, I'm used to being the talk of ugly rumors anyway."

Diana nodded at her own pace.

"How are you by the way?" Sucy asked. "With what's been going on with that Hanbridge boy."

The Brit chuckled, and it that moment, Sucy saw the side effects of her ongoing torture. If not for Diana's makeup to cover up her exhaustion, anyone could see that she wasn't fine,

"It's hard to accept that I had failed him. Quite profoundly." She inhaled sharply, staring the ceiling to keep the tears from falling. "I silently and bitterly mused that I was almost positive I had cried more in the past handful of months than I had previously in my entire life."

"I understand," Sucy said, almost too quickly. "Saving one person could mean failing the other and vice versa. Perhaps heading straight to danger is your way of coping."

"It appears I am reckless when in distress," Diana chuckled. "Perhaps you are right. Detection is an exact science like the law that is treated with the same unemotional manner. And to achieve that cold state, I head straight to danger because it gives me an edge. A pedestal to climb on or a wall to lean on."

"Sounds to me like you should continue it," Sucy said, not because she was encouraging her, but because Diana Cavendish was a glass filled to the brim and was on the danger of over spilling. To have her out of the picture, Sucy should make her mentally and emotionally ill. Heading straight to more danger won't give her clarity. Sucy knew this. She had gone to loads of psychiatrists to know Diana was in need of one because of her trauma.

All Sucy got to do to remove her from the scene permanently is to make her go crazy.

"The Blytonbury Killer's targets are plain simple," Diana mused. "They thought their motive would be too easy to detect so they made their methods complex."

"Them?" Sucy's brow shot to her hairline.

"I prefer to use gender-neutral nowadays. It helps destroy the image of a prominent male murderer. I believe the Blytnburry Killer acts alone and is of the fairer sex. Believes herself to be—"

Sucy suddenly felt exhausted. Just listening to the Brit gave her immense pain. To act as she cared was far more exhausting than using her energy to use magic. So she tune her out as she would to Loa when the doll was being overbearing. No wonder Diana Cavendish had no one to turn to. Despite her outward beautiful appearance, she was a mess inside. Sucy's stinging eyes flicked back and forth between the mass of curls obstructing her view of Diana's face and the shoulders beneath and behind them, hunched forward and nearly quivering with stress.

Sucy came to a sudden stop as a thought streaked through her mind, but within moments, a large, beaming smile slowly spread across her face as she spoke a heartfelt reply. "I don't know why but I hate hearing you demean yourself."

Diana looked taken aback by what she asked, Sucy did too. She couldn't believe what came out of her mouth. She could feel Loa on her desk giving her the side eye.

"All the self-deprecating crap that you spout really makes me want to poison you, and the pessimism, too. But you're right that your situation isn't great right now and that, in spite of this," she gestured between them, "I've no right to say otherwise."

Diana cleared her throat, uneasily. "Well enough about me, we were talking about your foster mother. All I wanted to say was that I am sorry for your loss."

Sucy didn't force herself to feel bad this time around, merely playing around the realm of apathy. "Eh, don't be. You could be so nosy, did you know that?"

She chuckled at that. "It appears I only wanted to see if you would open up to me."

Sucy looked away and pocketed her hands, trying to stop the itch that overwhelmed her since she brought the Brit to her flat. "You can't handle what you'll see."

There was a sudden bright flicker from her eyes. "How come? Did you had anything to do with the fact that she died?" she asked, egging on.

With lethargic movements, she rotated her head towards her direction. "No," she said sluggishly, her eyes squinting. "How can I command the plane she was in to crash?"

"It is feasible, and not impossible. Yet, it does sound ludicrous, never mind what I said."

"How's your visit to the alleged killer?" Amanda asked as the British girl headed towards her, exhausting hot air. She was sitting at the cafe beside Sucy's flat building and sipping a cup of freshly brewed coffee without a single worry in the world. "You texted me to hang around the vicinity if you ever need back up."

* * *

 _ **Diana stormed,** _ she sat next to Amanda at the entrance of the café, completely out of Sucy's field of vision. She attempted to feel completely relaxed under the shade of the table's umbrella. With the aromatic smell of coffee rich in the air, the sound of birds chirping happily, the perfect weather, and the chocolate chip muffin on her plate, but Diana is undoubtedly not in a good mood.

"She seems like a normal girl among the subculture of goths in this country. She was being so uncharacteristically kind!" She kicked some dirt off the pavement. "I do believe; however, it was all staged. She had this grand gesture of showing me her Haitian inspired voodoo doll plush that I am certain was too much."

"But, scary dolls like that seem typical of Sucy, to be honest," Amanda said as she pushed Diana's own latte near her.

Diana noted the fact that Amanda bought her ice cold coffee and not tea anymore. Amanda really cared about her. Tea reminded her of blood for uncanny reasons.

Hiding the new dopey grin that would surface on her lips, she said. "No, she is not the kind of girl who would have a fixated liking for objects that denotes childish and cutesy. All indications point to the fact that she is selling me a stunt."

"Oh?" Amanda uncrossed her arms behind her head and crouched closer. "What are those points?"

"I believe it takes a fracture of the soul to murder other people." Diana inched closer, whispering. "And Sucy Manbavaran is becoming a hollowed human shell the more she kills."

"Oh like Voldemort did," Amanda said.

Diana scoffed, her tone rising. "Would your references to pop culture impede please?"

"Then how else do you think I could understand what the fuck you're saying then? You said it yourself; all individuals have different learning mechanisms. I learn through memes and pop culture, ya nasty!" Amanda yelled back but proceeded a softer tone when she asked. "Did your sleuthing skills actually found any evidence in her flat room of something suspicious?"

"I have searched every nook and cranny," Diana said, her blue eyes like a hurricane. "Questioned every suspicious people and observed every weird and normal behavior, yet for the life of me, I can't seem to determine how the killings happen. All I got were was that she's an intelligent psychopath!"

"I bet she's enjoying your frustrations right now," Amanda said, chuckling. "I know I do."

"I would very much like to see you be a productive partner instead of placing all the work on me." Diana grabbed her drink and took one long sip until the brain freeze settled in.

"What are you doing?" Amanda asked.

Diana hit her head twice by the base of her palm, wincing. "I'm punishing my brain."

"What did your brain do to deserve such punishment?"

"It is what it did not do," Diana uttered, her free hand was massaging her temples. "We know that Sucy Manbavaran is an abhorrent human being who would rather protect her relationship with Akko than admitting all her murder sprees. And she's almost certainly behind the death of all the boys—"

"—who loved you before?"

"Again, Amanda, I was given the impression you have no penchant for the Young Adult genre."

"It was based on a book? I didn't know that. That's why it's so cheesy! What about you though? You mad at it?"

"On pure insistence from Barbara."

Amanda clapped in amusement before she voiced her opinion. "Diana, you have such a literal mind. Perhaps the reason why we always reach dead ends is that you aren't interested in having an open mind."

Diana now took a measured sip of her latte without averting her gaze. "I am an open-minded individual."

"You know what I mean."

"What?"

"Supernatural stuff."

"Ah bollocks!" Diana said. "I would have an inclination to believe the paranormal than the supernatural ones."

"Come on, listen to me. It might sound crazy now, but hear me out. It's a fact that there's a reason why the Blytonbury Killer couldn't be detected. It's a fact that we can't find it because we are looking in the wrong direction. It's also a fact that we haven't gone the supernatural or paranormal route. It's uncharted territory. It would be worth the exploration, no?"

"Do you have any proof that might lull in into your crazy idea?"

Amanda considered it for a moment before she spat out the most ludicrous sentence Diana ever heard. "Jesus revived from the dead."

Diana scoffed. "Religion is unrelated!"

"What? Are you saying you don't believe in God?"

Diana's throat was suddenly clogged by air. She wasn't about to talk about her religious beliefs. "All I'm saying is that reincarnation isn't real because what people are experiencing is called Déjà vu."

"That seems very complex and complicated, I don't want to hear the rest of that philosophy theory of yours."

It irked Diana that Amanda was right. But then, so was the collective consciousness that believed in religion.

"Come on, what do you have to lose?"

"Alright, even if we go with your delusional theory. How do we go about it?"

"Simple, we go to the Professor of the Occult."

"Pardon?"

"Professor Lukić. People call her the Professor of the Occult due to her theories on superstitions and curses."

"And you want us to ask for her help?"

"She's not called the Professor of the Occult for nothing though!"

Professor Lukić on weekends could be found on her own home, but on a certain month that is when Blytonbury hosted fairs, she could be found on her own stall in a star-studded royal blue and violet tent. She was quite famous for sure as she got some extra wage by pretending all of magic's hocus-pocus and telling people what they want to hear and make it as vague as possible.

Diana and Amanda had to go through the back door so as not to bother her lining customers outside, waiting for a reading. A wall of curtain greeted them with a silhouette of Professor Lukić and a customer sitting across each other with a crystal ball in between them.

"Who's there?" Professor Lukić's shrill voice emanated from the wall of a curtain. She stood from her seat and pushed the curtain sideways to face the intruders. "It's not your time yet, don't barge in here when it's not your turn."

The pair both took a step back at the intensity of Professor Lukić's aura. She was an old woman with long gray hair, a large pointed nose, and big bulging eyes. She stood crookedly and it seemed her eyes turned hollow and her hair moved on its own accord when she yelled at them.

"Our deep apologies, Professor," Diana muttered, recalling that the old woman had a penchant for scaring her students and she derived pleasure from it. "But we would like to discuss some things with you and it seemed we cannot afford to waste any time to line outside."

Slowly but surely, recognition flickers in Professor Lukić's eyes. "Wait, aren't you my students?" she asks, confusion evident on her face. "Are finally more of the Luna Nova students appreciating my talent? But I'm afraid you still have to line outside. This is no easy business."

"So you do admit it is all business?"

"That's not what I said, young one."

"Diana?" The customer appeared behind the curtains where Professor Lukić had been. Diana had no idea she was the kind of girl who believed in readings of fortunes. "What are you guys doing here?" she asked, annoyed.

Diana flinched slightly, taken back by the unexpected surprise. "A-Akko?"

There is just something so mesmerizing about Akko and her eyes are blazing hotly in a way that absolutely melted Diana's heart.

Akko's stunning appearance doesn't exactly help her though. "I… uh…" Diana was petrified, frozen on the spot, stiff as a statue. She can't move a single muscle, not even to get away from her stare. Akko's glare was too damn unnerving.

"Goddamn, Akko!" Amanda sneered. "I didn't know you were into this kind of stuff!"

"I was not…" Akko said, apprehensively, "really."

Sensing her uneasiness, Diana knitted her brows together at the possible explanation.

Akko cleared her throat. With her eyebrow raised, she asked, "Not that I don't like seeing you, guys, but why the hell were you trying to break into my important reading?" Her tone was softer, less hostile.

"Uh…" Diana quickly turned her head to face Amanda who merely shrugged at her.

It hit her hard all at once, due to her disbelief in these practices, she had become pretty much, a bitch, and a little disrespectful. Or more importantly, she had made a fool of herself in front of her crush in the absolutely worst way possible and will probably never ever redeem herself.

Horrified by her own imbecile actions, Diana began stammering, "I… I am in d-deep regret of what I did…"

"That's okay," Akko said. "Professor Lukić could do it again if you pay for the interrupted reading."

"Yes of course," Professor Lukić said with a proud smile. "If Miss Cavendish pays."

Diana reached for her wallet when Amanda stopped her and handed the Professor a bunch of her spare change. It pleased the old woman so much that it seemed she was given rare items for potion making.

"Let me do a reading for you free of charge Miss Cavendish."

"Oh?" Amanda asked. "I paid for the interruption but she gets the free reading?"

The Professor of occult proceeded with her warning. "I don't need to read your palms to know that you are in grave danger with what you are doing right now. Sororal love, no matter how strong, is no protection against serial killers."

"I had the same assumption that I am presently in danger which is pretty much obvious to those who have eyes. How would I know you are not spouting intricate nonsense? You read and heard about what I do in my spare time. Who is to say you do not speak of what is inevitable and mostly what I need to hear?"

The old woman chuckled before speaking softly. "Did you feel it? The ill wind that blew through Blytnbury last night like fission of electricity. As though the curtain between worlds had been torn asunder. The dead may claim your hearts and minds but not your souls. If you are not able to get out of that predicament, it will be the end for you. Unless you follow the path where your heart beats." She gave a subtle nod towards Akko.

Diana's cheeks flared at the implication, but her annoyance overcame the previous emotion. "Oh, suddenly you are a Professor of eschatology and psychology?"

"Hmmph, more like erotology." Professor Lukić hissed, taking pleasure in the fact that she successfully rattled the Brit once more. "Diana, believe what I say for your own sake. The heart line never lies. You know that your greatest passion is very close at hand. Pursue it."

"And believe what I say, Professor. I have no intention of pursuing my greatest passion. Unless it's answering questions that plague my every waking which is a particular favorite nowadays."

Professor Lukić clutched her chest, panting, and pale all of a sudden. "Oh, my heart."

"Are you alright, Professor?" Akko asked, holding the old woman by the shoulders to help her stand still.

"Oh, it's nothing." The old woman waved a hand of dismissal, but still, she clutched her chest with her other hand. "Go back in, Miss Kagari, we'll proceed once this is done."

"Are you ill?" Diana asked.

"I've given my heart to my work, literally. It's taken its toll. I have no energy to spare for skeptics. You do know quite well what I'm talking about, do you, Diana?"

"Yes, well, I can be a difficult girl to sway when it comes to spiritualists and stuff. Especially since you are searching for astounding ways as an excuse to psychoanalyze me."

"Psych analyzation founded its roots on divination and astrology." Professor Lukić took one more glimpse at the Japanese girl. "You seem to have a way with one particular kindred spirit, Miss Cavendish. Do tell me, do you discredit everything you don't see?"

"No, not everything. I believe in air, radio waves, electricity and magnetism or the energy that flares between two people." Diana folded her hands behind her, exuding politeness. "I, myself, can never get enough debates about the paranormal but I am afraid our time here is limited. Amanda and I came here to ask for your educated opinion."

"Go ahead."

"What do you think of the possibility that the Blytonbury Killer might be related to rituals or the occult?"

Professor Lukić screeched. But it was just her quirky way of laughing, as the very stereotype of a witch. "In ritual or occult crimes, the killer basically acts for supernatural reasons. But murders of Blytonbury Killer's type are extremely rare. And especially those committed by children. But madness has no borders. It could be a psychopath—born crazy, or a sociopath—raised crazy. Your killer does is not mentally ill. She does not belong to a cult. Your killer seems to act alone but she's possessed by a demon."

"I see," Diana said with a raised brow. "This conversation substantiated to be heading nowhere. It was an utter waste of time after all."

"Oh hey, guys!" Lotte walked through the back door, with no recollection of the mood around her. "I didn't know there was a small coven in here."

Only Professor Lukić snorted loudly. "I love that one. Miss Jansson, would you see these two extra guests out?"

"Of course, Professor." Lotte nodded her head in respect before addressing Diana and her companion. "Come on guys, I know have a lot of unanswered questions from Professor Lukić. I'm happy to answer all of them to the best of my ability!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter will be uploaded tomorrow!


	31. Chapter 31

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Holidays everyone!

"I did not expect you to be Professor Lukić's assistant," Diana admitted.

They stood in front of another tent where Amanda took it upon herself to have fun since they were in a fair. She had been long engrossed in gunslinger games, losing and sometimes winning them left to right.

"Oh, only like once every two weeks," Lotte said. "Usually when my grandmother needs some favor from her, I usually am part of the bargain."

"So you work for her in this fair?"

"She is known to be Madam Lukić in these parts," Lotte said, looking around the fair. "May I ask why you guys were there?"

"It was Amanda's idea," Diana said, pointing fingers. "And I am slightly onto the fact that she must have suggested visiting Professor Lukić so she would have an excuse of me heading to the fair with her."

"Hey!" The American yelled from where she stood. She was holding a gun on her left and a huge plushie porcupine on the other. "It was so not because of the fact that the Detective Inspector asked of me to help you unwind."

Diana shot her a glare to which Amanda flinched.

"It's worth a shot! I mean, you're an expert on logic and detection yet you can't solve it. Along with other detectives working on the case. I'm merely suggesting going through the paranormal route."

Lotte's face darkened at that, but it disappeared almost completely, Diana thought she imagined it.

"The Blytonbury Killer proved to be a worthy adversary for the police," Lotte commented. "Most of Madam Lukić's customers are usually those who want their fortunes to be read, but lately they are those who want to speak to the dead."

"Pardon?"

"You heard me right, Diana," Lotte said. "I have no idea why Akko's there though. Madam Lukić's ethics are similar to priests when people go to them to confess. We don't share their reasons. It would be breaching the confidentiality."

"Can we backtrack for a moment there?" Diana strained her jaw muscles, annoyed at the fact everyone was slowly realizing her crush that they must mention her every once in a while. "You say Professor Lukić's customers come to her to talk to the deceased?"

"Yes, especially those people who haven't made peace to the dead yet."

"I am not a fan of the con," Diana said, disapprovingly. "Especially when you use a person's grief for money. And thanks to the Blytonbury Killer, there's no shortage of bereft customers ripe for the plucking."

"If people take solace in belief, who are we to criticize them?" Lotte said. "And besides, it's not illegal."

"Quite afraid you are right."

"Diana, I know it's not my place to say so, but..." Lotte swallowed, licking her dried lips. "How are you holding up?"

"Whatever do you mean?"

"Well, it just seems to me, that you're a girl with a lot of unresolved issues. You can't help people when you don't help yourself." Lotte held her by the shoulder, Diana flinched upon touch at first before allowing it. The touch somehow grounded and calmed her. "You're experiencing slight distress. It could be PTSD, I don't know, but you've witnessed a lot of deaths the past few days. Don't you think exposing yourself more on these kinds of investigations might have you spiraling into madness?"

"Are you asking me if I'm seeing a shrink?"

"More or less," Lotte said. "If therapists are bothersome, I'm happy to lend an open ear."

"I am stable," Diana said, firmly. As if she was convincing herself and not Lotte. "I am sane. I have no need for it. A complete waste of money."

"Alright," Lotte said, avoiding Diana's blazing eyes. "If you ever need someone to talk to. I am here."

"Thank you, but Amanda fills the position quite profoundly."

As if on cue, Amanda's raucous laughter emanated from the other side of the fair as she had won the first prize of bottle stand game and she was now boasting it out on a large crowd.

"Are you sure?" Lotte asked, concerned.

Rolling her eyes at her partner's shenanigans, she crossed her arms. "Trust me, she's capable of conversations sometimes."

"But are there any conversations you couldn't open up to her?"

"Well, I do not expect her to accept all of my thoughts. The same way you could not tell your friends why you are leaving them just to save their lives."

"You left your friends?"

"Why yes, Hannah and Barbara." A ghost of a smile rested on her lips. "I made it seem like I could not stand to be associated with them, when in truth I care so much about them I do not want them to be the next targets."

"But you hang out with Amanda..." she said, "and me. What makes them different?"

"The sole difference is that Amanda wants to join the investigation and be my companion. Despite all the risks and dangers, she is stubborn that way and I admire her for that."

"You make it sound like you're not an admirable girl, yourself."

"I feel lackluster. I do not feel remarkable. Without my last name, I am no one."

"You're not a no one—not a nobody. You are Diana."

"Who is Diana without her last name?" she said, managing a wry smile despite the prickle of tears she could feel building behind her eyes. "Diana's not noble. I do not have an identity. I have always been the Cavendish girl—Lady Bernadette's daughter. When my time comes, I need to know what kind of a person I am. Was I a hero who saved lives, as my mother would have me be, was I a progenitor of death among my friends, or... will I die a coward?"

"Shellshock does mysterious things to the mind. It closes doors." Lotte said.

"So… I brought this to myself?"

"I'm not saying that, necessarily. But someone powerful wanted you dead." She reached for her hand. "I know this is difficult, but you should let go of the dead in favor of the ones alive."

Nothing compared to the agony of losing Andrew. He was a permanent fixture in her life the day she met him. Their families were related and she was used to the idea of him hovering over her like a brother she never had. But losing the others could destroy her just as easily.

How long will this last? How many people will she risk losing?

"Capturing criminals is like war, Diana. You risk everyone, every single day. Especially the person next to you."

Diana bit her lip, almost draining blood to stave off the thought of Amanda O'Neill, dead and gone.

Her mother had died years before, Frank and Andrew followed just last year, and soon everyone who had ever meant something to her would desert her because she sure deserved to be left all alone.

All societies have rituals surrounding burial. They convey the dead from this world to the next, but they serve a function for the living as well. A way to say goodbye. A way to visit the dead like a locked door one cannot enter and can only leave gifts and letters.

* * *

" _ **Hi." Sucy's**_ voice was very low against the breeze, waiting all day outside Akko's flat for a chance to talk to her.

"Hey there, Sucy." Akko began, she had been out someplace where Sucy doesn't know of. Her whole demeanor was tensed upon laying her eyes on the person waiting for her outside.

"It's nice to see you again. I was...I was really afraid…I had lost you."

"Had you ran out of drinkable water?"

"Here we are, haven't spoken to each other for a long while and you just ask me if I had run out of water?" she made herself chuckle to lessen the tension that infiltrated the air. "Yes I did, I bought new ones. You don't need to bother yourself with being my water provider."

"What else is there left to talk about us, then?" Akko asked, opening the door with her spare key in her pocket and quickly tried to shut it, but Sucy blocked the doorway.

"I just want to talk about you and me again."

"There is nothing to talk about," Akko told her confidently, trying to get the door to shut. "You and I are over."

Sucy pushed the door wide enough to let herself slip in. "I'm going to decide what I want, and I'm going to take it right now."

And she did.

Akko finally managed to detach her lips from Sucy's, pulling her head back. "Please, Sucy... please stop this."

Hearing her name escape Akko's with such desperation, combined with the pain and pleasure of Sucy's ministrations mixing together in a heady combination that heightened every one of her senses—it was too much for Akko.

Sucy wasn't having any of it. "Tell me you don't want this," she said, breathlessly, "and I'll stop."

Akko's voice got stuck in her throat so Sucy moved. Akko clenched her teeth and gripped Sucy's shoulders with her claws, but Sucy kept trailing flaming kisses along her gasoline skin. Akko whimpered and heaved out of breath.

"Please, Akko, please," she whispered hoarsely in Akko's ear, "Please accept me back."

"N-no," Akko whimpered. "Don't. I… won't. Not until..."

Sucy's mind left her body then. All she wanted was to claim Akko's territory.

"No..." Akko managed to speak through her clenched teeth.

Sucy went hot all over. Her heart banged wildly in her rib cage. She didn't know that Akko's voice was enough to keep her going.

"Sucy stop! You said you would!" She then started sobbing.

The sound of Akko's cries sounded an alarm. It began to clang inside her body the way a bronze bell was struck. Sucy felt the heat rose to her cheeks. She turned away from Akko's red piercing stare abruptly.

OH GOD WHAT HAS SHE DONE?

Sucy's face flushed at the notion of her embarrassment. By now, Loa made a snickering noise of amusement.

The whole time she wished she could disappear through the tiny crack in the window.

"I'm sorry Akko," she bit her lower lip.

"It's okay," she replied. Akko wiped the tears that flowed to her cheeks. Sucy was waiting for her to continue but she just smiled and shut the door to her face, locking it even.

* * *

 _ **After Amanda**_ had won various prizes on all the games she played, Diana managed to calm herself from an impending breakdown. They were now eating some bagels and popcorn at the picnic area.

"Sucy Manbavaran isn't a mob boss, she doesn't know dozens of criminals to acquire them and do her bidding," Diana argued. "And besides, no one goes to commit a murder hoping there's going to be a weapon handy, least of all a professional."

"Okay fine!" Amanda poured some sanitizer on her hand then rubbed them together. "But can you stop talking about the mystery for like an hour? It's not really doing you any good. We'll get back to it later, I promise."

Diana opted to clench her jaw shut.

"I swear you got to have a habit or something. Try to take your mind off things. You tend to overly obsess on stuff."

"I did recommend her to do yoga or a blind date." Lotte offered. "But she refused."

Amanda turned to Lotte, asking. "You sure madam crystal ball won't look for you?"

"Positive," Lotte said. "I'm taking a break. And besides, I missed you guys in school. I want to catch up."

"We have long been talking about the paranormal, Lotte," Diana said, licking her lips from eating some lemonade cotton candy Amanda shoved in her face.

"We're just having a hearty talk, Diana, come on. And what about you, Amanda?" Lotte asked "Skeptic or believer?"

"Let's just say..." Amanda persisted, throwing popcorn to her mouth. "I keep an open mind. I did tell Diana to visit the Professor of Occult."

"Always wise to keep your wits about you," Diana said, starkly.

"Did you know that this is the same fair where Shiny Chariot was discovered?"

"And we care… Because?"

Lotte chuckled. "Oh, Akko was rambling the other day. She told me before that she would want to start her road to fame as a magician here as well, but the mayor refused her idea to make up a small stage."

"Yeah, that sounds like Akko alright."

"But you should have seen her tricks," Lotte said before staring straight to Diana's direction. "You and I are well-informed spectators in a magic show. We know the truth behind the illusion. And for you, that ruins the appeal. Any amount of trickery and illusion the girl possessed could rival spiritualists. I can't say I'm not a least disappointed her request wasn't granted."

"You seem very familiar with Akko's repertoire," Diana noted.

"Oh, I need to be. Or tricksters like Akko will bring genuine spiritualists into disrepute."

"I see. Despite what my family thinks of illusionists, I secretly enjoy watching an expert practice sleight of a hand." Diana said, raising a brow towards Amanda. "Except when it comes to being a famous finger smith."

The implication of a thief went over Amanda's head but Lotte was unfazed by it.

"Why are you attracted to her anyway?" Lotte asked. "Is it because of her neotony face and attitude?"

Diana blinked at the question, but by now she's used to the fact that everyone else can see she got it bad for the Japanese girl. "Appearance-wise, she's average. Personality wise, I've had met a lot of people but Akko is definitely the most unique. I would like to know more about her."

"Hey Lotte, what if we make it into a bet on what great activity would serve as a good distraction for our blonde girl."

"What?" Diana gawked.

"I'm listening," Lotte said.

* * *

" _ **Why on**_ earth are we trashing the flower shop?" Diana huffed, it was the middle of the night and they were hiding in a dark alley near where Sucy worked. "And where did you manage to get reformist masks?"

They both were wearing the mask of the infamous fraternity hate group.

"I got it from Louis when he was being a little bitch. And that's not all! I got the necessities." Amanda waved her off, setting down her plastic bag and began taking out its contents. She laid out two cans of neon spray paint, half a dozen rolls of toilet paper, two cartons of eggs, and a bag of candy corn onto the table in a neat row.

Diana eyed the redhead carefully. "What are these for?"

"These items are essential for the destruction we are going to cause tonight," Amanda said like it was obvious. "How else do you think we are going to trash someone's place? And besides, Sucy lives in an apartment, it's hard to trash it. Too many things could go wrong. She owns this shop now, and it's easier to mess with."

Diana sighed and shook her head disapprovingly. "Just so you know, you are putting a lot of good money and food to waste."

"Relax," Amanda assured her, "Half of these were on discount and if anything, I'm doing the world a favor because candy corn isn't good food."

"I seriously ponder how good this will do to my mental and emotional health.|

"Quit whining, it's time for our plan to commence." Amanda shushed her and shoved the carton of eggs on Diana's arms.

"So, what do we do now?"

Amanda gave Diana a scornful look. "We start wrecking the place, obviously."

Diana scoffed. "Oh, forgive me for my lack of knowledge about criminal activity."

"Shh, no more sarcasm." She said. "In honor of your first time creating chaos, be my guest. Throw those eggs!"

Diana sighed but she attempted to open up a carton of eggs, she and Amanda were wearing gloves to prevent any fingerprints lying around. She grinned in triumph and reached to grab an egg only to let it slip and fall onto the ground with a crack. She lunged downwards instinctively which causes more eggs to fall, creating a mess. Miraculously, one egg yolk remains its symmetrical shape despite the impact. Pieces of eggshell are scattered across the ground around the yolk and Diana thought that it oddly resembled the stars and moon hanging in the sky.

"Well, I didn't know the great Diana Cavendish could be clumsy on her first time," Amanda said eyes widening as she stared at the eggy pavement. With a giggle, she tossed her a can.

Diana turned to Amanda with the can of spray paint in her hands, unsure what to do.

"Don't tell me you don't know what to do with that!"

"My lips are sealed then," Diana remarked as she peeled off the plastic covering the spray paint can. She uncapped it and gave it a shake, squinting in an attempt to look through the darkness. "Amanda, do you have a flashlight? I cannot tell where to spray"

"No, sorry, babe. My phone's bat dead. Just feel for the hole." Amanda then snickered softly at the unintentional innuendo.

Diana rolled her eyes. "Real mature, Amanda- FUCK!" She saw a bright flash of pink and immediately slammed her eyelids shut. Her face didn't receive most of the paint thanks to the mask but it didn't stop the fumes from irritating her eyes. She dropped the spray paint from her hand and spat out another obscene curse. Her eyes are stinging and she can feel them begin to water.

She's almost too distracted by the pain in her eyes to feel Amanda grabbing her frantically, demanding, "Diana! What's wrong? Are you okay?"

Diana gently rubbed her irritated eyes and opened them gingerly. She can see Amanda standing over her, worry etched upon her face. Maybe Amanda is a literal sight for sore eyes because the pain in Diana's eyes didn't start to subside.

"I am fine." She obviously lied but then proceeded to tell the truth. "None of the paint went into my eye, it is just the fumes."

Amanda released a breath of relief, giving the shorter a heavy look. Her voice is tinged with remorse. "Thank god."

"This is dangerous. Maybe we should not be doing this, as I have reluctantly agreed to the bet you made with Lotte."

"It's too late to back down now," Amanda gestured around them. "We've already made a mess. Might as well just continue." She picked up the neon pink spray paint and started spraying the wall of the shop, being extra careful to ensure it is directed away from her face.

Diana grabbed the other can of spray paint and began defacing the wall next to her. She is biting down on her lower lip in concentration, completely focused on her illustrating. After several more sprays of paint, Amanda stands back, grinning gleefully. "Ta-da!"

Diana squints her eyes at the glass wall, trying to make out the neon green graffiti. It is familiar to something she has seen doodled onto the pages of second-hand high school textbooks. Then it hit her. Utter horror stroke her when she realized what has been painted onto the wall.

"Is that—?"

"—a dick wearing a top hat," Amanda announces, looking very proud of her artwork.

Diana slapped her own forehead and groaned. "Your maturity level is off the charts."

"Hey! Vengeance is best served in the form of a juvenile prank!" Amanda defended. "What else could I have drawn?"

"Practically anything." Diana reached into the plastic bag and produced the bag of candy corn. "What did you get this for, anyway?"

"I thought it would be a good idea to scatter them around the house and then let ants take over," Amanda said,

Diana opened up the bag with the intention to bring it to Amanda. As she moved forward, she accidentally stepped into the raw egg and slipped, causing the bag of candy corn to spill out onto the floor and over herself.

"Goddamn," she groaned.

Amanda picked out a piece of candy corn from Diana's hair, fighting back a giggle. "You know, I don't think you are very good at this."

Before Diana can open her mouth to retort, they heard a voice from the other side of the street yelling, "HEY! WHAT DO YOU TWO THINK YOU'RE DOING?!"

They both whip their heads around to see a patrolling constable running towards them. Diana's heart dropped into her stomach.

"Shit," Amanda scoped up their plastic bag of equipment before grabbing Diana's wrist and sprinting into the alley. "Run!"

Still paralyzed by shock, Diana fumbled and forced her feet to move. They brush past buildings, dumpsters, dark alleyways and duck under the nearby tree branch in a desperate attempt to escape from the man chasing after them.

"Oh my stars, we are going to be arrested and thrown into prison." Diana flailed her arm around frantically. "Oh my stars, oh my stars, oh my stars, oh my stars—"

She was silenced by Amanda's hand over her mouth. Amanda shushed before yanking her into the bushes to hide. Diana stumbled, tripped over her own feet and fell down. Instead of crashing into the hard ground, she felt her body collide into something soft and warm. It took a soft curse from the redhead for Diana to realize that Amanda had sacrificed herself to cushion Diana's fall.

"Sorry," she breathed against Amanda's neck.

"It's fine—" Amanda stopped herself when they heard footsteps coming their way.

The shuffling of feet came closer and closer to their hiding spot before it stopped abruptly. They both held their breaths as they wait for the man to walk away. Eventually, the constable walked away, swearing under his breath.

Once they are sure that they are alone, Diana groaned, "See, I told you this was a bad idea. Why do I even associate with you?"

"Because you love me."

"You can dream about it."

"Whatever," Amanda rolled her eyes. "I'm sure Lotte found a better way to improve your state of mind tomorrow."

Diana feared for what Sunday has in store for her.

They stayed in the bushes for a little while longer, just to ensure that they are alone. After checking around their surroundings, they get up and proceed to travel back home.


	32. Chapter 32

It has not been a good day for Sucy.

Apparently, fate had decided to be a jerk to her today. Her alarm clock had spontaneously died in the middle of the night, which meant that it hadn't rung on time, causing Sucy to wake up much later than usual, despite Loa's constant attempts to wake her up. Not having enough time for breakfast or a cup of coffee, she had scurried out of the house without even showering.

And just her luck, traffic had been utter shit and she was fifteen minutes late for work. She gasped at the sight of the place. Her manager, some journalists, and some police surrounded the entrance.

The place had been trashed by some delinquents. The sight of it irked her so much. Sucy refused to be interviewed.

After receiving an earful from her manager, even if she had the legal right to own the place now, the process of transfer hadn't been approved by the lawyers since Sucy's name was misspelled in the will.

"Since when was Sucy turned to Susie?" she growled, asking Loa. She didn't care if anyone could have heard her. For all they knew, she was merely expressing her frustrations to herself.

She had to stand outside in the cold and spend all day scraping the egg yolk from the pavement and removing the dick drawn at the window until her fingers cramped up. And just because fate disliked her that much, she had to go through all of that while having to endure whispers and mischievous taunts thrown her way by her coworkers which the manager called in for an emergency to help them clean the place up.

Needless to say, she was more than relieved when she's finally allowed to get back home. On her way, her mouth hung open. Like miraculously finding a needle in a haystack, she saw a familiar silhouette from the corner of her eye.

* * *

 _ **It's seven**_ in the morning when Diana received an unpleasant shock. She lifted her head up from the phone she's been reading to call Carter to drive her to Amanda's loft.

Amanda was living with her best friends. Everyone had been busy doing their Sunday plans. Jasminka was baking, Constanze was playing some game that occurred in Ancient Greece with a female protagonist in her PS4, and Amanda was sleeping in.

They allowed Diana to wreak havoc inside Amanda's room.

"Amanda O'Neill, wake up." Diana snarled.

"HOLY FUCKING SHIT!" Amanda grabbed her blanket to cover her front. She wasn't wearing any bra, merely a tank top to cover her front.

Diana greeted her with a glare.

"What's wrong?"

Diana shoved her phone into Amanda's hand roughly. "Read it." She ordered.

Still bewildered, Amanda looked down at the UKN news page and began to read aloud. "'Alleged rapist nearly gets suffocated by condom because of an angry victim.'"

"Not that!" Diana groaned and pointed at a smaller article in the corner of the page. "This one."

"'Property damaged by violent reformists.'" Amanda's eyes widen. "'Yesterday evening, a flower shop suffered through great damage. Pictures obtained show that the structure had been vandalized severely, with mysterious graphics painted onto the walls of the building. Experts suggest that these illustrations could possibly depict warnings by gangs or even cults. Witnesses have stated that two people wearing white reformist masks were seen trespassing the property. Police speculate that these suspects were the remaining members of the reformist group led by Louis Blackwell and was seeking either revenge or salvation. They are the prime suspects of this case. If anyone has seen these suspects, please contact the authorities immediately.'"

Silence hung in the air between them. Diana's expression remained grave. "I listen to your ridiculous suggestion and we become wanted criminals."

"Well shit." The news killed what's left of Amanda's drowsiness. "Are you angry at me? Please don't be. We're not identified and we sure didn't leave any fingerprints."

"But we might have shed some DNA! It was pretty reckless! Though I have to say there are perfectly good explanations once it will be found." Diana sighed. "Promise me that from now on, we are not going to do anything that is considered criminal activity."

"I promise." Amanda raised her hand and crossed her heart. "Anything else?"

Diana took several seconds to contemplate before saying. "No, but you should get some breakfast."

As Amanda was making her way outside to the kitchen, Amanda's bathroom door busted open, revealing a newly showered Akko.

"Diana?" Akko said, cheeks slightly pink.

"A-AKKO?" Diana gasped. They both have the uncanny meetings where they would always find each other in places where the other shouldn't be. The only thing that separated Akko's nudity to her roaming eyes was a white towel. "W-what are you doing here?"

"I asked Jasna and Cons if I can crash the place tonight." Akko laughed awkwardly. "I don't feel safe in my flat alone."

"Oh? But you ended up in Amanda's bath?"

"She's got a bathtub!" Akko wailed before she saw the empty bed. "Speaking of the she-devil, where's she?"

"Shit Akko's here?" Amanda poked her head inside her bedroom carrying a plate of pancakes. "Where's Professor Ursula?"

"She stayed in with a friend last night," Akko said. "And I wouldn't want to be there alone, especially since Sucy's basically stalking me now."

"She what?"

"I'm fine guys."

Amanda placed her free hand on her hips. "You must be famished girl, dress up and let's eat!"

Akko nodded and headed towards the guest room where she had spare clothes.

Diana was still shocked that she ended up staying alone in the room. She stood there for a short while before she felt something soft and furry brushing against her legs.

"Meow."

The sudden sound and contact surprised Diana and she jumped slightly. She quickly looked down at her feet and was surprised to find a small, black cat looking back up at her with big yellow eyes.

"Meow." It purred and rubbed itself against Diana's ankle, its tail tickling her calf.

"Why, hello…" Diana crouched down and slowly extended her hands, reaching for the cat. The feline doesn't approach Diana's open hands. Instead, it just stared at the girl and tentatively nudged her pinky with a paw.

"Are you Amanda's?"

"She's Akko's." a small robotic voice said.

Diana clenched her heart, surprised at Constanze's presence. "Oh? I… I didn't know she has a cat."

"She just recently got it," Stanbot replied. "Says she looks like her old cat back in Japan."

"Akko's cat, I see," Diana said.

Upon hearing the name, the cat's ears perked up. It meowed once more before approaching Diana, all of its previous hesitation dissipating.

Diana gently lifted the cat up at eye level. She can't help but coo at how cute the cat was. "Well, hi! I'm Diana. Your mother's still getting dressed,"

"Meow." The cat replied helpfully.

"Diana come here and eat brunch with us!" Jasminka called.

Diana and Constanze followed the sound into the kitchen and found Akko rushing out of the guest room with a scowl on her face, gripping her phone. Somehow, even with a twisted grimace, she still managed to look gorgeous.

"What's with the face, Akko?" Amanda asked. "Received any incriminating texts?"

"Meow?"

Akko whipped her head around with lightning speed. Her frown immediately morphed into a smile when she saw her cat, and her irked mood seemed to improve greatly. "Oh my god, Salem!"

Bemused, Jasminka placed her pan down her and walked over to them cautiously.

Diana looked down at the fluffy cat in her arms with a slight frown. She had no idea that Akko was a fan of witches.

But the cat in her arms meowed once more when Akko went near. Salem then proceeded to stand on her hind legs and peer, like some sort of majestic meerkat.

Akko hurriedly strode towards the cat, camera ready and exclaimed, "Oh my god, you're doing it again!"

"Constanze mentioned this cat reminded you of your old one. You named them both Salem?" she asked as she eases the cat into Akko's arms.

Akko rubbed a thumb across Salem's head then stared at her with a smile, her red eyes shining in amusement. "Yep! But this Salem is a girl."

Diana fought herself from crumbling underneath her stare.

Akko then looked at Diana dead in the eye, "Do you have any cats?"

She shook her head.

"Aw, that's a shame. Imagine how cute the cat play dates would be." Akko joked, grinning.

"I would rather imagine us going on a date." Diana blurted out all of a sudden as if she lost her inhibitions for a while. When she realized what she said, she restrained from kicking herself in the shin.

"Shit!" Amanda yelled. If it wasn't for Amanda's outburst, Diana would have forgotten the loft's residences were their spectators. "Have some self-control lesbian, damn it."

Akko's cheeks were a light pink but she doesn't offer any verbal response. Instead, she studied Diana with an unfamiliar look in her eyes, one that Diana failed to read despite her practice and knowledge. Akko then leaned forward and swiftly pressed a gentle kiss against her cheek.

Everyone watching hollered. Amanda was the loudest, she even wolf-whistled.

Diana's brain short-circuits. She now knew what heaven was like.

Glancing at her phone screen, Akko was reminded of something. "You know, Lotte encourages me I should go on a date with you."

"She did what?"

"I said I would if you would ask me out." Akko smiled, looking away bashfully.

"Then what are you guys still doing here?" Amanda asked. Beside her, Constanze was nodding while sticking a thumbs-up and Jasminka was holding her reddened cheek. "Go have brunch somewhere else!"

Akko looked down at her shirt before looking back at Diana. "Let me change to into more appropriate clothes then we can head out!" She gave Diana a parting wave and a smile.

Diana returned the wave, which was miraculous because her brain was still a little fuzzy. She turned her head around to stare back at the girls, grinning widely. It's the grin that only appeared whenever Akko was around. Diana can still feel the ghost of Akko's kiss on her cheek, the spot where her lips had touched still tingling pleasantly.

"Leave the cat, Akko! We'll catsit for you." Amanda called out loud before sighing. "Looks like Lotte won the bet this time around."

Diana has always been a dog person, but if being in the presence of a cat meant that Akko would kiss her cheek—Diana was three seconds away from calling Anna to help her adopt a hundred cats.

* * *

 _ **Diana was**_ looking for Akko. It has been an hour since they started just roaming around town. Akko had a sudden inkling for something sweet so Diana offered to get them some food. Diana went off to buy their crepes from a nearby truck store when suddenly Akko wasn't where she left her. She searched around, looking for any indications where the girl had gone.

Maybe she was hallucinating the entire time.

She took a few steps forward when she noticed a trail of brown hair at the side of her eye. Akko was running towards her, scared for her life.

Diana jogged to close their distance. "Akko?"

"What were you doing, you idiot?" she shouted, skidding to a halt. "Don't stop—run!" she screamed, catching her under the arm. Diana almost yanked her off her feet by the sheer force.

Diana knew better than to argue when Akko was so incredibly terrified. All she can do is to get her feet under herself, reorient, and sprint as fast as she can, keeping pace at the Japanese girl's side.

"Who's out there?" she asked when they managed to find a good hiding spot. She was still holding both of their crepes, but some of the fillings had started to slump.

"It's Sucy!" Akko hissed.

Diana's world blanked. She never knew she would find herself in a situation where she would be running away from her date's ex-girlfriend. Yet again, it was Sucy and Akko was Akko. Diana had an idea that Akko was the type of girl who would run away from conflict, and it was proven today when Akko literally dragged her out of the way.

They hid on a dead end corner near a dumpster. The putrid smell was leaking off, but it didn't bother Akko as much as it did on her.

Akko's fear was clear as day. There was no denying that. Fear for herself or fear for Diana specifically, Diana had no way of knowing. She knew she should be mirroring the same fear from her date's eyes but all she could feel was warmth because Akko was too close to her personal space.

Akko unknowingly inched closer to her when shot an inquisitive glance from where they hid.

"She's coming this way!" she squealed.

Diana thought that her excessive blushing has somehow managed to damage her hearing. "Huh?"

"I'm so sorry... so sorry." It was the moment that Akko started shaking when Diana understood the gravity of the situation.

There was no more escape. No more routes to pass through. Only a few moments left, Sucy will turn to this corner and she will find them.

Reluctant but quick, Diana handed the crepes to Akko and plunged into danger. She raised her hands, meeting Sucy's eyes. "Just me," she panted.

Sucy looked at her, eyes tickling like a pendulum. A scale settling on balance. Diana's relief melted in an instant, realizing exactly what Sucy could be weighing—her life.

She could try to kill her, right here, and no one would know. Diana could just be casualties and Sucy would have her revenge. Sucy's hand stayed, but Diana found the same voodoo doll from her hip.

Diana held her shivering gaze, saying nothing, barely daring to breathe. Trying not to tip her in the wrong direction.

"You're on a date with my ex." Sucy simply said.

"Oh?" Diana taunted, she decided it was best not to worm her way out of this. "Is it obvious?"

"Let me talk to her, Cavendish." A desire washed over Sucy to push her out of the way.

"Again with the hostility, Manbavaran?" she asked, arching a delicate eyebrow.

"I don't trust you."

"The sentiment is mutual." Diana crossed her arms. "She prefers not to see you. As you can see how she quickly fled the scene like a rabbit from a fox."

"You're a wolf hiding in sheep's clothing. You're worse than a fox." Sucy scoffed before her eyes shot back behind Diana and still hasn't seen Akko. The Filipino started to take a few steps backward. "But don't worry, I'll still run as your vice president and I have friendly advice for you. Whatever connection you have found with her during this trysts is a lie."

When Sucy disappeared into the distance, Diana felt light-feathered. Akko might have felt it too because she came out from her hiding spot and exhaled loudly. The crepes were nowhere to be found. Although Diana spotted a little bit of cream on the corner of Akko's lips.

"You didn't have to do that," Akko said. "Thank you, Diana."

"It is nothing." She brushed it off. Diana was unsure why she did it, but she hugged Akko then, though she wasn't sure that the light placement of her arms around the shorter girl's shoulders could even be considered that.

Diana's words seemed to lift the invisible weight off Akko's shoulders. But although Akko was partially relieved, she still was mortified and felt horrible. "I'm still so incredibly sorry this happened. Is there anything I can do to make it up to you?"

Still smiling, Diana shook her head and said, "You can make it up to me by continuing today's date."

Diana lingered for a moment as she cupped Akko's face. She gulped softly. Akko looked so beautiful right now. Her big red eyes scanned her curiously. Diana swore she saw them flit down to her mouth. She was uncertain whether Akko was biting her lip a little bit while blushing.

"What are you thinking about?" Diana asked softly, practically a whisper.

Akko stared that soul-piercing stare. "You," she said without a single stutter.

Diana leaned in first. Their lips close, but still not touching. The gravity was too much; however, she wanted her lips to take Akko's in a gentle flourish.

"You are so beautiful, Akko," Diana whispered, emphasizing each word. Her hands held Akko's face in place as she leaned in closer. Akko closed her eyes and placed her hands on Diana's waist.

"Diana," Akko breathed, tangling her hands into Diana's honey blonde hair.

She wanted to fucking worship her. To please her in a way she hadn't before but... Akko stopped her.

"Oh," Diana panted in surprise when Akko grabbed her shoulder to stop her from pressing herself against Akko's lithe figure.

"No," Akko whispered, a soft smile on her face.

"Oh," Diana said again, catching her breath. She gulped to wet the sudden dryness in her mouth. "I...I'm s—"

Akko interrupted her again with a finger to her lips. "Shhh... You are not ready," she said.

Diana blinked in confusion, "What does that mean?"

Akko shook her head, "You're not ready," she repeated. "For me, and I you," she added.

Diana smiled tiredly and nodded. She didn't fully understand but she knew that whatever Akko was trying to say meant she definitely did not want this right now. Diana would wait. She'd wait a lifetime for Akko. "Did you happen to eat all the crepes I bought?"

* * *

 _ **Cursing words**_ so crude that she could've made a sailor blush, Sucy has no other choice but to leave after using an invisibility spell to witness everything when she made it seem she left earlier.

She turned around on corner and undo the spell when Loa started preaching again.

_"You know we could kill them. You have no need for those people."_

Sucy's eyes were red and itchy from all that crying. No matter how many times Loa pressured her into killing them both of the spot, Sucy refused. A plan for Cavendish was settled prior to this. Lotte was right. There was an act of far better revenge than murder.

"NO! It will make me more suspicious. The noose around my neck is pretty tight already, so no!"

When she has finally arrived at her flat building, she quickly scurried inside and ignored the dirty looks thrown at her inside the lobby.

Because it's her lucky day, one of the elevators is out of order—again.

 _"When was the elevator even functional?"_ Loa asked.

Sucy sighed and impatiently tapped her foot against the tiled floor as she waited for one of the remaining two elevators to descend to the ground floor.

Five minutes later and the elevators still have yet reached any floor with a single digit.

Sucy was getting more and more exasperated by the second. She shifted from foot to foot, weighing her options. On one hand, she was absolutely irritable and exhausted and has no desire to waste her remaining energy on flights of stairs. But on the other, she desperately wants to rush back home and take a hot bath.

She really, really doesn't want to climb her way to her floor but she also has no desire to become explosive in a public area.

Holding back a frustrated scream, Sucy reluctantly began to ascend the stairs, her shoes stomping heavily against the concrete. She mentally chided herself for living on a high floor throughout the tiresome journey.

Once she finally reached her floor, she was grouchier and wearier than ever. One would think that the strenuous activity of climbing up flights of stairs would energize her or at least warm her up a bit, but of course, it did neither. She absentmindedly made her way down the hallway, walking past the other identical doors until she gets to hers. Sucy was certain that her frigid feet are numb at this point.

Reaching her front door, she pulled out her key ring from her pocket and the chain abruptly snaps in half, sending her keys to the ground. Sucy closed her eyes and groaned. There was no way this day can get any worse. After retrieving her key from the floor, she slips it into the keyhole and quickly turned it to unlock the door.

Except it doesn't turn.

Sucy furrowed her brow, bemused.

 _"Umm Sucy..."_ Loa began.

"NO, SHUT THE FUCK UP!" She turned it again firmly but the key remained immovable. Convinced that perhaps it needed to be positioned in a better angle, she wiggled it around a bit before turning once more. But still, the door remained locked. Muttering a series of profanities under her breath, Sucy gave her key another sharp jerk to the right. Instead of unlocking the door as it should've, the head of her key ends up bending.

"What the..." She let out an annoyed huff and tries to turn her bent key again only to be faced with failure once more.

Sucy grabbed the doorknob and twisted it forcefully multiple times but it also refused to turn.

"Why won't you open?!" She lunged forward and slammed her shoulder against the door in a desperate attempt to bust it open.

The door barely moved. She undeniably had underestimated her own strength and the sturdiness of the door because it hurt. Wincing from the impact, she is also sure that she might've pulled a muscle. Her lack of success left her with no other choice but think of using voodoo magic. But then, another thought came crashing in. She backed up slightly, Sucy steadied herself and raised a foot, prepared to kick the door down.

All of a sudden, the door swung open and Sucy found herself staring at the end of a knife, the edge of it barely brushing the tip of her nose. She flinched slightly, taken back by the unexpected surprise. Perplexed, she tore her eyes away from the bat, looked behind it and nearly choked.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?" Lotte demanded, her blue eyes flaring brightly.

"Uh…" Sucy blinked. She blinked several times more and then realized that the knife's sharp object is exactly half an inch away from her nose. She moved her gaze back onto Lotte and despite the current situation, she can't help but feel her chest flutter. "Lotte?"

"Sucy?"

"Y-Yeah." Sucy stammered. The knife in her face and it definitely was still terrifying.

Sensing her uneasiness, Lotte slowly lowered the blade. Eyebrow raised, she asks, "Not that I don't like seeing you, Sucy, but why the hell were you trying to break into my apartment?" Her tone is softer, less hostile.

"Uh…" Sucy quickly turns her head to the doorplate on the wall beside the door. "Since when do you live here?"

"Just two days ago. I found that the amenities here are far better than where I lived before."

Then, realization her Sucy hard all at once. Lotte might as well had stabbed her: she had been too caught up with her thoughts and had mistaken her neighbor's front door for her own. Instead of entering her flat room, she'd practically tried to break down Lotte's door.

Or more importantly, she had made a fool of herself in front of her in the absolutely worst way possible and will probably never ever redeem herself.

Horrified by her own imbecile actions, Sucy began stammering, "Shit, I'm so sorry, Lotte, I didn't—"

"If you wanted to visit, you could've just knocked, you know," Lotte said drily. A small smile is playing on her lips like she's finding Sucy's stuttering amusing.

"No, oh my god, Lotte, it was an accident! I didn't mean to- I mistook your door for my own. I swear that I—I'm such an idiot." She smacked her own forehead with the palm of her hand and groaned.

 _"I've been trying to tell you that this isn't your room, genius,"_ Loa growled.

Lotte laughed softly, interrupting Sucy's rant. She noticed that Lotte's icy glare has softened tremendously and has been replaced by a bright sparkle. "It's alright. It was an accident, you didn't mean to do it. It's fine."

Sucy was utterly baffled. "You're not mad?" She asked, tentative. Lotte shrugged, her smile widening. "I mean, I'm definitely surprised—and a little amused—but no, I'm not really mad at you. I guess that if it was anyone else, I'd defend myself with this." She waved the knife. "But it's you, and I know that you'd never intend to do this on purpose. Besides, accidents happen."

"But—"

"It's perfectly okay, Sucy. Just go back and rest. My door is nothing compared to your health." Yanking the key out of her door with a little difficulty, Lotte reached over and took Sucy's hand before leading her towards her apartment.

Lotte's hand was warm and soft and Sucy can feel thousands of rainbow-colored butterflies fluttering in her stomach.

 _"She's bewitching you again,"_ Loa whispered.

"What I'm doing is called reassurance," Lotte said, sharply. "Something I'm sure you haven't heard of."

The shorter girl unlocked Sucy's door and handed her back her key. "Take a hot bath, change your clothes, and go to bed early. I'll see you at school whenever, okay?" Lotte wrapped her arms around Sucy in a brief but warm hug and then proceeded to give her a swift kiss on the cheek.

All Sucy can do was a nod. Lotte seemed to have taken away her ability to speak.

Flashing her a little smile, one that made Sucy feel warm and fuzzy inside, Lotte waved goodbye and returned to her own apartment.

The sound of the door clicking shut snapped Sucy out of her daze. She still felt like an idiot.

She's been embarrassed enough for a lifetime.

* * *

**A/N: sorry for the delayed chapter, I figured I would post it around this time. Happy New Year to Everyone!**


	33. Chapter 33

"Akko!" Sucy called after her when she chanced upon Akko walking to school the next morning. She was with Amanda and her crew who looked like they didn't want to leave her or to even let Sucy within her vicinity.

Akko looked over her shoulder to her then stared back at her companions.

"I'll be fine. Please head on to school without me! I'm sorry," Akko said and the next thing Sucy knew, Amanda's cold eyes were glaring at her.

Amanda and the rest continued on their way while Akko stopped to wait for Sucy. When Sucy stood beside her, she went for the kill. "You will never do that again, you hear me?"

"That's none of your concern," she snapped.

"Everything about you concerns me!" Sucy retorted.

Akko fell silent, then turned away. "You're not my mother, Sucy. You don't get to tell me what to do or not to do."

"Are you saying this because you wanted to be with Cavendish so badly?" she said with an acid tone. "Do you prefer blondes? Do you prefer blue eyed and fair skinned, Akko, is that it?"

Akko's jaw flung open as she looked at her like she almost didn't believe her ears. "Diana and I are just friends!"

"Didn't look like that when she looked like she desperately wants to shove her tongue into your mouth," she shot back, her eyes still glaring like bright jewels.

Akko's eyes widened.

"Yes, I stayed behind, cloaking myself with an invisibility spell!"

Akko gritted her teeth. "You're the one to talk, Sucy. I didn't even let her do it. I pushed stopped her, and she respected it. She didn't cause a scene as you did. Her looks don't matter at all. I don't care if your hair is of a mysterious color and your skin is a deathly pale brown. If I want to sleep with her, it's still none of your business," Akko spat and raised her chin up daringly. "At least, she genuinely cares about me, and isn't going to cheat on me."

"I'll make sure she cares no more," Sucy's cold words hinted at a dark purpose.

"Don't you dare do anything to her," Akko muttered protectively, recoiling from the idea of Diana getting hurt or something.

"Why do you want her? I have seen your heart, and you're nothing like her. We couldn't have synced the last time when I used that spell. It only works for likeminded people... like us! You're not a good girl, you're far from it."

"That's not legal proof. Admit what you are, Sucy, but don't drag me in it."

"Proof?" she chuckled. A laugh that held dark humor. "I don't need proof to know. Must I denounce myself a monster while you still refuse to see the one growing inside you? You're either a charming narcissist or an impulsive liar, Akko. A charming girl with APD who manipulated everyone into thinking you're innocent. You even had me fooled. People who suffer from antisocial personality disorders belong to one another."

"Diana Cavendish is my friend, Sucy," Akko explained, hard lines formed in her facial expression. "Sure, I used her because she has materials and the influences that I don't, but I didn't kill her or her friends. I didn't isolate her from her remaining ones."

"You held her heart hostage. Don't act like you're oblivious to it! I won't let anyone touch you with dirty intentions."

"Oh, so only you can?"

The light in her eyes shifted as Akko glared at her. Then she swiftly reached over and grabbed Akko's wrist, pulling her forcefully towards her. Their noses almost touched. Akko attempted to pry her hands off, but Sucy tugged on her like an iron chain. Sucy's hellfire eyes stirred with heat into Akko's.

Akko fought against the fear that tried to overpower her.

"You've tormented me enough, Akko," Sucy hissed in a low frustrated voice. "It could have been easier if I just let Loa handle you in the first place."

"What were you going to do to me?" Akko snapped back. "Abduct me and force yourself on me? Quite brave of you to try anything on a public road in daylight."

Sucy's jaw tightened at her words. The look on her face morphed from anger to anxiety and finally to pain. Her piercing red eyes glittered with moisture. She looked hurt. It struck Akko as odd. Sucy Manbavaran in her most vulnerable state was something she had never expected to see.

"I don't know how it became like this, Sucy. But as I've said before and will keep saying until you actually, finally believe me; I'm not going to leave you to deal with this shit on your own. I don't abandon my friends—loyal to a fault and all that." Akko waved a hand dismissively.

"Why would you lie to me?" Sucy asked, her voice breaking. "Those are mere words... empty promises. You don't show it. You don't mean it until you show it. You keep breaking my heart."

Akko winced. More conflicted than ever. "Does a truly religious person bend their knees in their private altar or at the high street? To genuinely mean your intentions, no eyes need to see it."

"Then you're nothing but a liar," Sucy said, her teeth gritting. "You're like some sort of addict who kept promising they'll get themselves clean after one last shot but continue on putting a needle up your arm whenever no one's looking."

"You never had faith, Sucy. Not just in religion, but within the people that you let inside your walls."

Sucy could feel herself breaking inside. She tilted her head upwards to stop the tears from flowing. It's always like this. She can get emotional breakdowns in bad and crowded situations places full of expectations. Sucy kept it in or at least tried to be. She was so sick of these shits. Why must she keep up with appearances and expectations?

 _"You're graduating,"_  Loa answered.  _"You need a good moral character. You wanted what everyone does—to leave this place and get yourself a true home with a wife that loves you unconditionally. The problem one has when finding this so-called true love is to find a person that matches every personality, traits, the good and the bad and loving every part of a person. It just sounds so impossible."_

* * *

" _ **I never**_  knew frustration could make such an effect that would take hold of me."

"Can't you speak like a normal person for once?" Amanda grumbled. "Or is that just how British people talk all the time?"

Diana knitted her eyebrows and tried one more time to express her distress. "I am so frustrated."

"You need to be more specific than that, princess," Amanda said, elevating her legs to the top of the table.

They were the only ones at the Student Council office. The other members were nowhere to be seen, probably late or out doing their jobs. Hannah and Barbara had not left the council but they might as well have considering the poignant silence in the room. Diana never knew she would miss their constant flocking.

"Did the date not go well?" Amanda queried.

"Oh, it was quite good." Diana scoffed, looking out of the window. "The only problem was that we got caught by her ex-girlfriend."

"Oh no, she didn't."

Diana merely nodded.

"Damn, that's why you're frustrated."

"If I were to be truthful, that is not all. It has been proven that no matter what we do, search for clues, and pick up hunches. You know—tedious work. And we got the whole MET working on the case, yet nothing turns up."

"Why not we just confront her anyway?" Amanda asked. "Surely the two of us can handle her all alone."

Diana was over the edge, pushed against her limit. Her rational thoughts were nothing but a thin thread with the danger of being cut. "I made you promise we would not dabble ourselves in another criminal activity."

"It's not even criminal activity. Think of it as teenagers being teenagers."

"I never thought I would say this, Amanda." Diana sighed, exhaustion tensing her shoulders. "Let us do it."

* * *

 _ **Sucy strode**_  along the empty third-floor corridor towards her first class for the morning. She preferred the long way over the crowded area anyways. The little quietness in between really gave her a bit peace of mind.

She approached the door to the girls' lavatory. She looked down as she reached a hand out to push her way inside when Loa spoke. "Sucy, there's someone behind y—"

Loa was cut short when Sucy felt strong hands grab her from behind, forcing her to breathe in a surge of strong chloroform from a handkerchief and whirled on the spot, her gaze flitting around wildly in an attempt to find her aggressor. Unable to scream and too shocked to think of trying anything else, Sucy lost consciousness and let herself be pulled into the empty classroom, and listened in dread as its door clicked shut behind her.

Sucy aroused back to consciousness when she smelled another inhalant, forcing her to wake.

"Morning," intoned a strong, clear, and recognizable voice from somewhere behind her, and another echoed the greeting, its timbre a tad lower.

 _"Well, well, well,"_  the cornered voodoo doll from Sucy's pocket mused.  _"Now this is going to be interesting."_

Sucy, too, was intrigued in spite of her precarious predicament.

The classroom's desks had all been pushed out of the way so that only a single chair remained in the center of the room. Sucy was promptly flung down onto the seat, Disarmed, and relieved of her books and bag.

 _"Sucy, I can easily get you out of those ropes."_  Loa offered her escape.

Her heart pounding, Sucy denied the offer for now and made no move to escape, knowing that any such attempts would be pointless and likely humiliating.

Loa is taken off-guard when she heard Sucy's inner thoughts.  _"You want me to…"_

Sucy slightly nodded.

_"Noted. I'll untie the knots once you give me the signal then."_

No; she would just have to wait and see what was going on. Thankfully, she didn't have to wait long.

With deliberately slow steps, Sucy's ambushers approached her from behind, but Sucy didn't bother to look round, already certain of their identities. And sure enough, Diana Cavendish walked into view on Sucy's right, and immediately behind her followed Amanda O'Neill.

"Well," Sucy started pleasantly, smiling upwards at the proverbial snake with a set of eerily perfect, white teeth. "Look at this. If it isn't the snake in the grass, come to greet us with her presence. Seeing as you've conveniently arranged things so that we're all here now, I'd just love to chat with you if, of course, that's what you've brought me here for."

"Hello, Sucy." Diana grinned apologetically, the expression entirely hollow. "You are correct, there is another matter I would like to discuss with you."

Sucy returned the grin with one of her own, keeping her eyes wide and innocent and the rest of her features relaxed. "Well, I don't know, Diana," she replied with a dull tone. "Is it necessary to ambush me in such a way?"

"I do not think it is that strange," Diana admitted. "After all, we have not exactly had a friendly relationship over the months, even in the best of times. But I am sure you are aware of that."

"We were finally starting to become friends though," Sucy said loftily. "But you just stabbed me in the back yesterday."

"I must say, you continue to expand your list of enemies in your line of work." Diana started.

Sucy's smile disappeared. "What do you really want from me, Diana?"

"Easy. I know you are the mastermind, the Blytonburry Killer." Diana said. "I would bet all my possessions that Akko broke up with you when she knew, which is why she literally feared for her life ever since. That is all the possible theory among the discernible facts."

Actually, the way they looked at Akko was pathetic, really, when Sucy thought about it. It made Sucy want to laugh and punch something at the same time. Just what did they think, that Akko's ex-girlfriend was Satan reincarnate?

"That's exactly what they think," Loa whispered, uncannily similar to that insidious voice in the back of her head, the one that sounded suspiciously like her foster mother. "They think you're an evil, little bitch who has somehow managed to corrupt the innocent girl and turn her to the dark side."

"Must be frustrating. Knowing you can't prove any of it."

"I might never be able to bring to light your craft, but that is not my primary concern. I wish to bring all the murdered victims to justice. And that I can achieve. Once you provide me with the murder weapon."

"Now you're living on fantasy land."

"I am quite certain you have something. Like some kind of witch possession that needs the victim's hair stashed somewhere."

 _"Uh… what?"_  Loa asked.  _"She knows?"_

Sucy quirked an eyebrow. "That's wonderful imagery, Diana. You have a gift for poetry and literature. You've read too many books."

"Let us not get too riled up on my perfect metaphor, Sucy."

Sucy got everything she needed by that sentence. Diana Cavendish had really no idea what she was capable of.

"If what you say is true and I dabble myself with dark magic, then I'm curious, why would you tip over rocks if you don't know what's beneath them?" Sucy rebuked her, whose eyebrows were rising ever-closer to her hairline. "Shouldn't you be scared of me instead of confronting me? It is not wise to do so when you know I have the complete advantage over you."

"Oh I am afraid of you, but I will never get anywhere if I am always afraid. If you kill me right now, I am obviously and unfortunately dead, but our police friend—who I told everything else will have the undeniable proof that it was you who killed me. And if anything ever happens to us both, the coppers would know our theory has been right all along."

Sucy's visible eye seemed to enlarge. At the same time, though, she wasn't entirely comfortable with the idea of not retaliating. That would send entirely the wrong message. The look in her eyes was thunderous.

"Wait, what are you alleging me for?"

"Cut the shite, Sucy," Amanda spat from Diana's left, not giving her companion the chance to respond.

 _"How typical"_  Loa mirrored Sucy's thoughts, thoroughly enjoying her impatience.  _"The American redhead, as always, has no appreciation for some good repartee."_

Amanda went on, her voice sharp, her words clipped and heated. "Diana knows what happened and she knows what you're like, Sucy. So why don't you save us all some time, and then we might even be able to make it to class before they deem us all late."

"Conspiracy, murder, aiding and abetting are all just at the top of my head," Diana said. "Worry not, we will be providing charging documents when we find out the murder weapon."

"And what exactly was my motive?"

"Jealousy, Sucy. It's as simple as the crime was complex."

Sucy glanced from Amanda's glare over to Diana's impassiveness and back again. She allowed her smile to morph from saccharine to threatening as her lips pulled themselves tighter over her teeth and formed a leer.

"Sounds reasonable," she remarked, dark humor oozing from the words. "I'd hate to keep you from your education, girls." She let the leer widen before assuming a cloying expression of concern towards Diana. "How about you, Diana? You've lost weight over the past months. Have you not been eating much? I sure wouldn't want to deny you the chance to put some meat back on those bones of yours."

Amanda bared her teeth. "You're such a bitch, Sucy."

That irked Sucy.

"I'm not at all surprised by Amanda, but you, Diana. Allowing Amanda to kidnap me? This is an incredibly short-sighted move on your part. I'm disappointed in you, President." Sucy crooned the taunt maliciously, savoring the hatred in her captors' eyes.

"You can try to intimidate us, Sucy," Diana cut her off as her lips twisted wryly. "But from our vantage point, you look silly."

Sucy lifted an eyebrow, exuding patronizing skepticism as she stared down at the Caucasians.

"You can blame me," Diana went on, ignoring the look, "Or better yet, blame yourself. You have made some hasty assumptions about me, and that is what has led to this misstep."

"Assumptions?" Sucy repeated, amused. "Do tell me, Diana, what assumptions have I allegedly made?"

"You assumed that I would not have the courage to do this extremity. But you pushed me over the edge, I am slightly losing my sanity." Diana's smile widened. "And you were wrong."

"Oh, how marvelous! The great daughter of the Cavendish Household losing her sanity, leading her to apprehend and hostage an innocent citizen for believing she is somehow a criminal. That's one for the papers, I think! I wonder what that story would do to your credibility, Diana. People would think that you're incredibly naive if they found out, you know. The students here already do! They don't know what to make of this." Sucy gestured flippantly at Diana.

"I am not in the habit of letting other people's opinions phase me, Sucy," Diana replied steadily; but under the facade of calmness, Sucy could tell that she was irritated. Diana had nothing on Sucy's experience in the discipline of deceit, and Sucy knew that little spark of anger when she saw it. "Still," Diana added, her tone light, "you might want to be a bit more wary of me because I would hate to have to deal with you if you insist on being a nuisance. I would much rather spend my time preparing for our exams."

Sucy was getting tired of this conversation, and the weakness of that threat made her laugh scornfully with impatience. "Oh, spare me," she retorted sharply. "You're a goodie-two-shoes to the core, you and your little do-gooder friends. You're not going to do anything to me."

Diana stared at Sucy, her blue eyes glinting with disbelief before she brought her gaze up to look at Amanda. After an indefinitely long moment of silence, Diana tossed her head back and started to laugh. Amanda joined in before long, shaking her head scornfully at Sucy.

"You really don't know anything about Diana, do you, Sucy?" Amanda gasped through her giggles. "Oh, that's hilarious. You're completely out of your depth. And I thought you had some ulterior motive, too—but it turns out you're an idiot after all."

"Says the real simpleton." Sucy gritted her teeth, locking her jaw and staring straight ahead, refusing to meet either witch's gaze. "You must have hanged around her for so long you started using Diana's vocabulary."

"HEY, YOU TAKE THAT BACK!" Amanda gave her a scalding glare.

Sucy had the best chuckle since then.

"It is not actually an insult, Amanda."

"But Diana!" Amanda glanced over at Diana, the fire in her eyes softening slightly as the American's gaze met her companions.

Well, thought Sucy, a sneer curving her lips as she obtained a newfound knowledge. She may have underestimated Diana, yes; but she's made the same mistake with Amanda. Sucy couldn't help but chuckle at the fact that Amanda had eyes for Diana herself.

Diana Cavendish may be oblivious, but she is not.

* * *

 _ **Out of**_  the corner of her eye, Diana saw Sucy shaking her head.

Diana took a few steps towards Sucy and leaned down a bit, looking at her with grim intent; and as the Brit stared into the Filipino's eyes, Diana caught a glimpse of a kind of ruthlessness that she had known was present in the girl, and for the first time during the conversation, she felt distinctly uncomfortable.

There was a reason why Sucy Manbavaran was still free from her crimes, and that reason was at present literally looming over her.

"There's nothing wrong with being a goodie-two-shoes, Sucy, but all the same, don't ever mistake me for one." Diana sighed, and the exhalation had a disappointed tone to it, as though she were a professor and Sucy, a promising student who'd written a lackluster essay.

"Whatever you say then." Sucy rolled her eyes. Diana only assumed because her other eye was always hidden by the Filipino's bangs.

"Let me make this simple for you," Diana suggested, her voice lowering. "Surrender yourself to justice, repent for your sins and back off from Akko. If you really have the level of influence over your stalkerish behaviors and antisocial personality disorder. Tell yourself that Akko is free to associate with whomever she'd like without repercussions."

Sucy opened her mouth to interrupt, but Diana cut her off, anticipating the remark.

"You scarred Akko quite enough, Sucy. It is for her best interest if you stop pursuing her."

Sucy began to cackle, a flicker of dark amusement played across her face. "Anyone foolish enough to object me to be with Akko won't know what hit them once I've done my bit, and anyone imbecilic enough to go after her romantically will soon come to regret their actions. Akko is mine and only mine. She might not see it yet, but we are destined to be together. It's written in our palms, the stars, the leylines even brought us together."

Amanda's forehead creased at their conversation and Diana measured the Filipino sitting tied to a chair standing over her for a long moment and came to what now seemed a rather obvious conclusion.

"Have you stopped taking your medications, Sucy? How long have you been acting that you are sane?"

The Filipino girl gave Diana a grin, and her teeth may as well have been icicles for how cold it was. "Oh please, this isn't about me, isn't it? It's about you. You just want me gone. You want to find excuses to get rid of me so you can have Akko all for yourself. Akko's such a sweet girl, isn't she? A one of a kind cliché. After all, that's why you mistook Akko for a bleeding heart, isn't it?"

Diana gave one final, weary sigh. "Don't try me, Sucy," she warned a peculiar, weary kind of determination in her eyes, "and don't try Amanda, either. If you do, you will not enjoy the consequences. Of that, I can assure you."

As if it was slow motion, Sucy had a mischievous smile on her face as she stood from the chair, her hands were free, untied from the knots.

Diana's jaw dropped. "H-how—"

Sucy immediately went straight for her neck. Choking her with only one hand. Taken completely unaware, Diana had no time to defend herself. Air got restricted from her lungs. Try as she might pry Sucy's hand off her, she hadn't known that Sucy Manbavaran had a vice-like grip despite her frail-looking body.

Amanda instantly acted once she got over her own shock. She grabbed Sucy from behind and pulled her away. She managed to do so but Sucy wrapped herself all over her like a deadly spider who caught her first meal of the day.

"DIANAAAA HELLLLP!"

 _Fuck,_  Diana thought to herself in a rare indulgence of profanity.  _I have gone and underestimated her._

Her neck still stinging, Diana forced her body to move forward despite the involuntary coughs when she finally received air again. Unknowingly behind her, Sucy's doll was managed to float behind her unsuspecting.

The curse struck her back, and so her limbs snapped together, stiffening like a slab of stone. For a moment she seemed to totter, and then she was falling face-first to the ground, only to land with a resounding thud. She found herself unable to move, and if she had been capable of doing so, she would have groaned.

Fear of the unknown blanketed her whole body when she couldn't move an inch. Her heart started palpitating when her body began to levitate from the ground, and she felt herself being moved through the air, the tiles seeming to slide by underneath her as she was forced to stare straight down.

She noticed that Sucy was still pinning Amanda on the ground. She immediately rolled over and in just a blink of an eye. Diana took Sucy's place, straddling her and wrapping her nimble fingers around Amanda's fragile neck.

"Diana?" Amanda choked in bated breath. Still fighting her off. "W-what's g-going—"

Hyper aware of her surroundings, Diana noticed Sucy walking over to grab her voodoo doll from midair and held onto its arms like it was imitating Diana.

"How does it feel, Diana?" Sucy kept the steady pressure on Diana's hands. "To have an unknown force controlling your own body? How does it feel to watch someone slowly die by your own hands?"

"BLACK MAGIC! SUCY I'LL GET YOU." Amanda bellowed ferociously, attempting her best to get Diana off her. "YOU WON'T GET AWAY WITH THIS."

"Diana," Sucy whispered. "Bet you're so surprised with this."

She was. Diana never considered the possibility of magic indeed.

"Did you know, that the human body is so malleable that I could bend you in half with the back of a teaspoon after you kill your own friend?"

Diana had no idea how absurd her situation is right now. But she can't do anything. A vague sensation it was, to dig her fingers on Amanda's neck. She can't move, plead, or even blink. Diana realized the threat all the same. She has no chance in this, not with the loaded gun of a puppet master staring her down. Every action is controlled and calculated by a witch.

There was no chance of escape. It was either that Diana would do this of her own volition or she does it of theirs.

Still, it was a peculiar thing that fate would give her such a fear, and ignore every warning signs that she overlooked in favor of logic and realism. And thus it gave her and Amanda reason enough to kiss the dear, sweet close calls death.

Sucy chuckled, leering over them. "Oh, Amanda, I'm not that cruel as you all thought me to be. Here, I'll let Diana kill you slowly as you two have your final conversation together."

"NO!" Finally, Diana felt her control over her head came back. She kept pleading as she willed herself to pry her own hands away. It terribly hurt. It hurt as though her veins were going to burst.

Amanda's reflexes and will to live started kicking—literally. The American started using her lower body strength to kick and push Diana off of her. But Diana weighted like a permanent concrete on top of her. Hearing Amanda's own suffocating cries affected Diana in the worst ways.

"Come on," she snapped her heads upwards to look at Sucy.

The Filipino that faced her held no sympathy. Sucy's face was a cold mask as she stared at them.

"What is wrong with you? You are holding a magic murder weapon. Do you not want to cut me? Stab me? Make me suffer? Attack me, damn it! Not Amanda! You want to kill me, don't you?" Diana choked on her own sob.

"Trust me, I tried so many times." Sucy rumbled, baring her teeth.

The memories seared Diana's mind. Frank's blood, Andrew's cut, Avery's injuries, and her unexplained fever. Her throat closed and her fist, clenched tightly around Amanda's neck as she struggled to breathe.

"No," she shook her head, whispering. Diana stared at her in silent anguish.

And then, suddenly, rage overwhelmed her anguish. With a choked cry, Diana swore to seize control of her own limbs with all the strength she could find. It doesn't matter anymore if she many a bone or vein in the process.

Amanda managed to get in a lungful of air as Diana fought for her own control. Despite that, it only took Sucy one more push using her voodoo magic and all of Diana's progress disappeared. This time, Diana could feel she can just snap Amanda's neck.

She looked down at the girl in her arms. Amanda's eyes were wide open. "Don't fight it anymore, Diana," Amanda said, uncharacteristically giving up and her face turning blue, devoid of oxygen.

"No, no, NO!" Diana's screams got hoarser as she fought her alien arms.

"This isn't over anyway. I'm sure I'll be reincarnated peacefully in my next life." Amanda mustered with all the strength left in her.

Diana scoffed. "I still don't think reincarnation exists."

"You're still hell-bent about that, huh?" Amanda teased. "I do believe in it. Because it's easier to live when you think we can do this all over again."

"Shh, stop talking," Diana whispered, she could feel the tightness and strength in her fingers. She knew that it was getting harder for oxygen to go through. A gush of tears escaped her eyes.

"P-promise me, D-Diana." She said, stubborn as a mule. "A-avenge me, okay? Put that motherfucker behind bars! And perhaps before all this has been said and done... we'll collaborate again."

Diana stared at her for a long moment. At last, her wet blue eyes dropped. "No," she whispered miserably. She was still terrified, but her fear was being overwhelmed by a kind of sadness and justified anger.

She tried to feel for her pulse around the redhead's neck. "No, no... This can't be happening."

Amanda just breathed her final air.

Diana let out a bloodcurdling cry, shaking her head in disbelief, hovering over Amanda's dead body, immobile and thoroughly chilled. "AMANDA NOO!"

This has long been personal now. Amanda O'Neill will be the last person to die in front of her.

Sucy clapped her hands. The sound echoed eerily around the walls of the classroom. She chuckled softly, and Diana felt her strong fingers weaving through her blonde curls, tipping her head up to meet Sucy's brutal smile.

"That's quite touching, Diana. Too bad, you won't remember everything." Sucy crooned from above, letting go of her.

"What?" was all Diana asked before some blunt object knocked her from behind.


	34. Chapter 34

Diana woke with a splitting headache. For a sweet, groggy millisecond, she had no idea where she was. There was a buzz around her and movement. She kept hearing voices. Her attention sharpened into focus.

"The funicular marks on her neck suggest she was strangled by some kind of rope. She has scratches in her neck from struggling while being strangled." An older man said. "Her jaw is starting to stiffen. It's been two or three hours since she died."

"Thank you for your report Sergeant."

Footsteps echoed until disappeared out the door.

The dim ceiling lights flickered wearily, like an exhausted child trying to keep their eyes open. The realization came to her slowly, as if through a thick haze, and she could feel someone squeezing her shoulder, hard. It was Detective Inspector Croix and she was in a hospital bed.

"Diana, what's wrong? You had a bloody nose." She hadn't let go ever since she'd pulled Diana away from the dead body and carried her to a seat. The Italian woman's fingers were grasping hers so tightly she might have been trying to siphon the pulsing pain out of Diana's body and store it in hers.

She blinked and instinctively touched her face. It was wiped clean except for the tracks of tears on her pale cheeks.

"W-what happened? What time is it?" Diana tried to stay focused on the warmth of the hand around hers. She concentrated on the strength of the grip, how her mentor showed no signs of loosening her hold even when literal hell sprung on one of Luna Nova's classrooms.

"Damn, I was hoping you'd tell me what happened yourself. So does that mean you don't know who killed Amanda?"

"S-she's dead?" her chest constricted for a second and all she could hear was the sound of her lungs screaming for air. She waited for words, a facial expression, even disgust would have provoked relief in her. She hated the waiting part most.

"You're a witness, Diana... to a locked room murder case. The killer had no explainable escape route for now. On the scene, investigators found no traces of breaking and entering. Apart from signs of the struggle that had taken place. Please remember something."

Not more than a few hours ago, Diana had been with Amanda, ready to face the world together, but now Amanda was dead. Diana squeezed her eyes shut, trying to remember the scene from playing out again in her mind to recall who the murderer was. Watching the life fade from her, watching Amanda's face go slack, just after hearing her final words.

Diana had always been weighed down by grief, but now, hearing about Amanda's dead body, Diana felt different—carved out, hollow, as if all the emotion had been scraped out of her.

After the bliss of complete mental shutdown, the world suddenly came rushing back too fast. The air was choking her, the silence deafened her, and the thought of Amanda's corpse hurt her head.

"That could be due to strangulation or from a concussion." Detective Inspector Croix said. "The block in venous drainage causes capillary hemorrhage. And the increase in blood pressure. Can bring on a bloody nose as well. Whoever killed Amanda O'Neill tried to do it to you as well. Needless to say, they were unsuccessful as a group of students approached the room after hearing a commotion. So they fled the crime scene."

Diana wrapped herself into a ball when she winced cause of sudden pain. She stared at her arms. There were angry red lines embedded on her skin—scratch marks.

"Any idea how you got them?"

"None, whatsoever," Diana said, her daze slowly fading. She winced from a sharp pain from her head. Feeling her scalp, indeed there was a small bump. "Where is Sucy? She was with us before this ordeal occurred."

The Detective Inspector's brow furrowed. "She was with you? She was nowhere near the crime scene. A group of girls found you, and told us they haven't seen anyone else apart from you and the late O'Neill."

"I believe I found your killer then," Diana said.

"You think Manbavaran doctored the port?"

"Possibly. Tried to murder two people and then disappeared like Houdini from a room with a locked window and a tiny chimney. From what I know of Luna Nova's blueprints, there's not even a secret entrance to that particular classroom. It is someone either an expert lock pick or someone who has access to the key."

"Listen, Diana, this might come out as a shock, but it's pretty reasonable. You are not to pursue that line of investigation. It's a conflict of interest, Diana. Even I shouldn't be because I am biased to your innocence."

"Whatever are you chattering about?"

"You are the lead suspect of Amanda O'Neill's murder."

The moment the idea was presented to her. A quick flashback fluttered through her vision. Amanda being straddled on the ground. Amanda struggling to breathe. Amanda trying to push Diana off of her. Diana's fingers digging themselves through Amanda's soft and delicate neck.

Her heart banged at the memory. She hadn't known if her brain conjured up a fake memory or it was a repressed memory trying to be noticed.

Diana merely controlled her expressions so as not to give the information away. "You were deliberately fed a false lead to cast suspicion on me. Clearly, I was framed by someone. That is what I get from ruffling feathers—an affront to my reputation, an offense which I cannot abide."

"Why are you so hell-bent on finding the killer, Diana?" Detective Inspector Croix asked. "You could have stuck to simpler mysteries if it's as simple as a hobby. This isn't part of the duties of being the Student Council President. Are you trying to immerse yourself in another horror as you escape your own horrors?"

"What if I say I do? Are you trying to get rid of me as all adults do?"

"I'm merely trying to calculate you, Diana. Three people close to you had died, and one is at the hospital. Before you got themselves harmed, what was it for you? Was it a puzzle game?"

"It became personal, the moment Frank died."

"I know. That's why I'm asking. Before his death, what was this case... this mystery for you?"

"A salvation for the House of Cavendish." Diana's eyes became cloudy with tears and messy eyeliner. "When my mother died, nobody batted an eye for she refused to distinguish friend and foe. She healed the Human Regurgitator's injuries as she fled the cops despite everyone's disapproval. Everyone loathed her and lost respect for our family name. Is that reason enough for you?"

"The Human Regurgitator..." The Detective Inspector regarded her as for the moment. "Would you want to know, my reason?"

"You were assigned to it?" Diana attempted a sarcastic remark.

"No," Professor Croix asked. "It's because I've dealt with these kinds of serial killers before."

"What do you mean?"

"Many impressionable young minds fall under the devil's spell and look to him to fulfill their hopes and desires. They forget that this monster only knows how to take, never to give. The first crime these fragile young people commit is the first step of a long descent into hell, human justice and loss of innocence. And you're right. It can happen that primitive compulsions take hold of a person, and if an aggressive compulsion takes a person over, to the point where that person loses their humaneness that person turns into a mindless robot, simply carrying out the aggression. So yes, I do believe the one who killed Thomas Kinsley and his friends was to protect someone and the one who killed Frank, Andrew and Amanda are out of spite for you."

"So," Diana nibbled her lower lip. "How did you end up as where you are now?"

"To protect someone I love. She was being chased by the serial killer that rampaged the country before the Blytonbury Killer."

"The Human Regurgitator?" Diana gasped in awe. "But that killer plagued the country 20 years ago, how did you come in contact with her?"

"My girlfriend and I were victims. We became friends with what seemed to be a normal girl, we didn't realize it sooner that she was the killer the world feared. After everything, I ended up as part of the cops."

"Oh I'm sorry... is she—"

"Dead? Oh, good riddance no. The serial killer disappeared, I believe she may have died too, but I fear her legacy lives on."

"You mean someone is a fanatic?"

"More likely inherited it," Detective Inspector Croix said, squeezing Diana's hand. "It has come to my attention that I never considered trusting you with all the information I had Diana."

"I know for a fact that you do," Diana said. "Are you only telling me now because I am in the danger of being framed as the Blytonbury Killer?"

"I anticipated that the killer would come after me, but I never knew they would hate you more."

"Listen, Diana. You are forbidden to ever deal with the case files from the Blytonbury Killer, now that everyone in my department is suspicious of you. The forensics took samples of anything they could find in you, hair in clothes, dirt under your nails, all that stuff—" She noticed that Diana was about to protest, but she raised her voice. "I believe you are innocent but those are precautions to clear your name!"

"Please proceed."

"Other than that, we'll also have to do some tests, Diana with psychiatrists who work for Scotland Yard. They will be the standard psychopathology tests."

"I am not insane," Diana muttered weakly, "...yet."

"But what you can do, Diana... after your get dispatched is to be a fresh set of eyes. Revisit the case of the Human Regurgitator. Their methods of killing are different in every way, but if you found the connection between both killers, then we can find the murder weapon."

* * *

 _ **"What can** _ you tell me about the girls named Chloe, Sarah, and Elfriede?" Sucy asked through a burner phone with her spell-controlled spy. The mentioned girls almost caught her using her witchcraft, so she had to make sure she would know their dirt if ever she needed to dispose of them because of her hasty retreat.

"Sarah and Elfriede are normal kids from normal families," Avery replied, her voice echoed as she was hiding in her room's bathroom. "Chloe, however, is a student who came from a famous family from France. As a hardworking student, she constantly sees Diana as a rival who always managed to beat her in grades and primarily, the Student Council President Election. There's also one thing that everyone who would observe her closely that would notice. And it is the fact that she has a crush on Diana. She usually won't be honest about it and usually would argue or to compete just so she can have a conversation with her crush."

"Were you able to get anything else about Diana's situation over there?"

"She appears to have no recollection of anything from the past few hours. Moreover, the Detective Inspector told her to review the case files of the Human Regurgitator."

"The Human what?"

"The serial killer that caused a nationwide panic 20 years ago that kills by tearing off some of their internal organs, makes the victim consume their own flesh then expulses the undigested meat. It is said that the Human Regurgitator is somehow related to Jack the Ripper as they both mysteriously disappeared from public eye."

"I see... thank you, Avery. You've been nothing but helpful. Maybe after all this, I'll spare your life." Sucy said before turning the call off and breaking the phone in half and dumping it down the river where she first met Akko.

"So... are you going to kill them?" Loa asked.

"No," Sucy whispered, looking at the distance. Classes have been canceled today and the next few days until the investigation wrapped up.

Luna Nova's deemed cursed with more than 20 students dead, Sucy's quite certain there would be fewer enrollees or if there would be even people coming back.

"Diana doesn't seem to care about them at all. Too much work to kill insignificant things. But I must say, pulling her into a false sense of security has been a pleasure."

Sucy's inner musings subsided, her heart leaped to her throat as she saw a familiar figure approach her from the distance. Akko arrived, she appeared to be walking something on a leash.

"Hey, Sucy."

"Hey," her throat was dry and her head grew quiet.

"Meow," the weird black cat on a leash purred alongside Akko's feet.

"Reminiscing much?" Akko leaned against the railing of the bridge.

"Yeah, I would always go here to find my peace of mind. It's nice to finally have another real discussion with you. We don't cross paths very often as much as the last four years now, do we? Rather odd, isn't it, given that we're in the same year and have been at school together for, what, six going on seven years? Well, for me, at least."

"Extenuating circumstances and all that as Professor Ursula might put it," Akko said.

Sucy's mouth twitched. Truth be told, Sucy missed her. Badly. But she'd felt Akko's absence even more keenly after Diana had decided to sweep Akko up out of nowhere.

"Why did you kill Amanda?" she asked, an odd note to her voice that Sucy couldn't quite decipher.

Sucy chuckled. "You won't get any straight answers from a straight question anymore, Akko."

"When had you become so evil and unredeemable, Sucy?"

Sucy laughed; it was a sad, wry sound. "You're one to talk."

"I'm not the product of anything. I've given up good and evil for behaviorism."

"Then you can't say that I'm evil."

"You're destructive. It's kind of like the same thing."

"Evil is destructive? Storms and fires are evil if it's that simple. Mosquitoes, snakes and other creatures that harm people are evil."

"Don't blame the animals for killing. They are killing for food. Humans are the only ones who kill to kill."

"Nevertheless," Sucy pondered, ignoring Akko's futile explanations. "Underwriters lump it all under Acts of God."

"But people deserve to live. There's the whole debacle about human rights!"

"You're Japanese, Akko. Surely you believe in capital punishment. Are we not created in God's image? And doesn't God kill all the time? Why shouldn't we do the same?"

"I don't..." she started, hesitating a little. "I don't agree to everything shitty my country did in all our history."

It seemed like Akko wasn't only referring to her country.

"I know you still have feelings for me, Akko. If you don't then why are you here with me when you could have been trying to comfort your new girlfriend?"

"We aren't together, Sucy. How many times must I say that? It was just one date."

"You're not even doing anything to help her, though. Soon she'll be removed from the picture and you did nothing."

"When a tree falls down in the forest and no one was there to witness it. Did it really happen?"

Sucy gulped. Akko had never been the person who likes poetry. Or better yet, had she used poetry to help her better convey her thoughts and feelings.

"When did she even get a cat?" Loa interrupted her thoughts.

"Well I guess, I should head back." Akko spun on her heels when she stayed for a while. "I might not show it, Sucy, but I care about you... and Diana. Diana's too pale and worn around the edges, even her usually perfect hair was ragged from where she was continually running nervous fingers through it. And you? You're just the same."

Sucy was always helpless whenever she watched Akko walk away from her. She could be the most powerful witch in the world, yet she couldn't bring herself to use her magic to make Akko stay. All the psychiatrists in the world are mistaken about her psychopathy.

She jerked a little as she forced herself to snap out of it.

The truth was that Sucy didn't know what the hell to make of Akko anymore. One minute Akko wanted nothing to do with her, then the next, Akko wanted everything to do with her. Showing her care, showing a pinch of love throughout her cold demeanor, but at the same time, Akko used Diana to get to her nerves. Akko was a mess of contradictions that somehow gelled perfectly and it was infuriating and fascinating to Sucy.

"If you think any harder, steam's going to start pouring out of your ears," Loa murmured.

* * *

 _ **"So what?"**_ Detective Inspector Croix's superior asked her. "The murderer just vanished into thin air? No one could get in or out. The answer has been in front of our eyes the whole time! The Blytonbury Killer has been right beside us all along!"

"I believe Diana when he says that they vanished into thin air. I also believed where they might have materialized." Detective Croix said.

"It's all just belief, Meridies. The evidence against the child is overwhelming. Look, if I were you, do your job now. Don't wait until she turns legal."

That was all Diana managed to hear when she eavesdropped on them.

Ever since that conversation, Diana had been brooding, filled with a longing for the faded comfort and a hot beverage. Since she finished all her physical and mental exams, her feet mindlessly wandered through the street. She found herself in the High Street, which was unusually almost deserted, even the carts that fed useless rubbish to the tourists were gone and felt like one of the survivors after a nuclear holocaust.

She spotted a cozy cafe that also sells English brewed tea, and gulped. She missed her beloved beverage and wondered if she can go back into drinking it without being reminded of blood. Stopping by the door, she opened it.

And of course, there she was.

Sucy seemed to have been waiting for her; her eyes met hers with an air of expectancy. Diana shuddered at the arrogance, that Sucy thought that she knew her well enough to anticipate her appearance.

"Why thank you, Jana. You're such a gentleman." Sucy swooped from inside to outside.

Diana yelped. She literally jumped like a cat who saw a cucumber beside her.

"Whoa there, are you alright?" Sucy's smiled disappeared in favor of false empathy. "What a stupid question, of course, you're not. Your new best friend was killed."

"You don't get to talk about her, Sucy."

"What's wrong with you? You're crankier than an old sailor, show the world that women can be trusted to hold positions of power."

"I know what I said." Diana rasped. "I'm a great believer in the power of the feminine to wield influence in the civilized world. But whatever happened to Amanda wasn't very civilized."

Sucy lifted an eyebrow. "I don't know how our conversation led to that since you specifically told me not to talk about her."

"This was all an elaborate ruse." Diana interrupted. "There was no end to the lies you manufactured for me."

Sucy squinted her eye, simply observing her like Diana was like a ticking time bomb. "Are you done?"

"Whatever horrors you visited on her, I have imagined tenfold. And given the chance, I would do the same to you without smearing my lip-gloss."

"Are you insinuating that I killed Amanda O'Neill?"

"Oh trust me, I am doing more than insinuating. I know you want me dead, Manbavaran."

Sucy scowled reproachfully at Diana but, having learned from her previous faux pas, let that last comment slide. Diana's greater implication; however, did not remain similarly untouched.

"I will admit, it's more out of the spur of the moment. But can you blame me? I just saw you on a date with my ex. And if you still have lingering doubts, here's how you can be certain I'm not the one who tried to kill you. You're alive."

"Diana Cavendish!" A girl's voice yelled from a black car's backseat window with a charming debonair.

"Ugh," she grimaced. She knew exactly who it was, even as she avoid looking as the lady stepped down from the car.

"I didn't know you're out of the hospital this fast." The French girl with a bronze colored hair in a perm said when she finally reached talking distance. "I was going to visit to wish you well."

Then all of a sudden her cheeks burned. "Actually, not alone. Sarah and Elfriede were going to meet me at the hospital lobby."

"Then you should tell them there is no need, Chloe," Diana replied. In the corner of her eye, Sucy was clearly amused. Diana noticed the source of amusement late.

Chloe was holding a bouquet of flowers and Diana flinched at the sight of the fact that the flowers reminded her of companion's death. There seemed to be countless triggers for Diana, waiting to be discovered.

"Wow, so you do have a crush on Diana Cavendish?" Sucy voiced out her thoughts.

Instead of denying it as always, Chloe said something completely out of character. "What's it to you if I do? Got any problem with gay people?"

Sucy seemed as if she wanted to roll her eyes at the French girl who had been inside the closet for so long she hadn't realized she is literally surrounded by lesbians.

"Alright," Chloe frowned, her fingers from one hand magically managed to type despite the absurd size of her phone case. "I'll send the girls a quick text that the school's most popular girl is fine."

"Quite the contrary," Diana said. "I am far from being fine. Now, if you are done in making sure of that, mademoiselle, I suggest you should walk back home."

"Take the flowers at least."

"Not to be a killjoy here," Sucy chimed in. "But I think Diana's fed up with flowers."

"Oh," Chloe's shoulders sagged for a second before she removed the get well card and approached a nearby group of girls from another school. She handed it to the prettiest girl and said, with a thick French accent. "Bouquet for the lovely chatelaine from your secret admirer."

With a smile, she left the screaming girls at the fake possible Romeo for Juliet.

"So uh, Cavendish." Chloe approached them once more. "Why do you seem to be walking home? Want me to give you a ride?"

"Oh, she would love that," Sucy said swiftly before Diana could shoot her a steely gaze of hatred.

Sucy was definitely trying to get rid of her.

Diana decided that at least, she needed the ride, but not towards home where she knew her aunt will be waiting for her to give her an earful.

"Chloe, I hope it would not be troublesome if I agree."

Walking towards her destination was the only exercise Sucy could get in her everyday life. It could either be to school, to work and walking to get groceries has saved her the money for the fare. It even served her better in her mental efforts as well, almost better than showering.

So as she walked home after a satisfying taunt to her rival, Sucy found herself with a few minutes left to spare before she reached her flat's building. "She has completely forgotten about your existence, Loa," Sucy whispered.

"That's the beauty of magic, isn't it? You can erase your mistakes in others' memories."

"Soon, all she would remember is her suffocating her own friend herself."

"I couldn't be more proud of how devious you've become, Sucy."

"Loa," she sighed, focusing her thoughts elsewhere. "This has been plaguing my mind for a while since Avery mentioned it."

"I had been waiting for you to speak your mind, Sucy."

"I'm certain that in about an hour or so, Diana would be doing her homework about the Human Regurgitator. And I wonder how's that related to my case? Also, why does this killer's murder design sound like voodoo magic?"

"It has been a while since you asked about your birth mother."

"Oh," resentment laced her throat. "That woman, of course. And all these months, I have blotted it on my mind."

"You are the eldest child of Sinag, she bequeathed her powers to you as you will on your future daughter."

"What does the Detective Inspector know of her? Is there damning evidence that she left that could point to me? How can I learn who my mother was?"

"You have to reacquaint yourself with the town you so dearly despise."

"Where the orphanage is?"

"No, here. In Blytonbury."

"I think it's high time for you to tell me who my mother really was before she had me."

"She was the sole Manbavaran heir unless biology provides another." Loa began reminiscing, like the old sentient being it was.

"What are you saying? That she decided to be promiscuous then had me?"

"I was aware of Sinag's goal of having a child. I was not aware of the means to achieving it."

"So you don't know who my father is?" Sucy inquired. "Why did she suddenly decide to have me?"

"Remember what I told you before, Sucy? That whoever possesses me bears the curse of being unloved? Sinag was a formidable woman with fortitude. She wanted to pass the burden over. She wanted no part of the curse. She wanted to be loved by the woman she had eyes for."

"Meaning, she had me so she can run away with her lover." Sucy seethed, she despised her mother's selfishness, but then again, she was her mother's child, she inherited the same trait. "That didn't go well for her, did it?"

"Love and death are the great hinges on which all human sympathies turn. What you do for yourselves, dies with you. What you do for others… that's beyond you." Loa stated, from its observation.

"Did you kill my mother's beloved?"

Loa cackled, almost too much. "There were no other suitable punishments for a doctor who will die from an incurable disease. Why did you stop walking, Sucy?"

Sucy's heartbeat increased. The familiar vehicle stood out from the scene like a mocking child destroying the painting from an art gallery. The French girl's car was there, parked near her flat building.

"What business would she have near here?" Sucy gritted her teeth. She had a lot of reasons swimming through her mind, but only one came rushing in stronger than the others.


	35. Chapter 35

"You okay?" Chloe asked softly, leaning against her shoulder briefly. They rode at the backseat of her car with the driver occasionally glancing at the rearview mirror to look at them.

Diana shrugged, glancing down at her hands, which were clenched together in her lap. Staring gloomily at the road ahead, weighing the pros and cons of staying silent against telling Chloe what had happened. She might not even believe her if she told her what Sucy had done.

She was at the danger of over spilling, any moment, any nudge could cause her to break a dam and flood anyone near her.

Diana wasn't sure if Chloe had seen through the Sucy's facade, and if she hadn't, it might prove difficult to convince her that it was a facade at all.

But even assuming that she could, Diana thought to herself, then what would happen? It wasn't as if Chloe could do anything about it, not without getting herself mixed up in the serial killer mysteries, and since Chloe had plenty of sense, it was quite unlikely that she'd do something like that—especially when it was just to help her out.

Who would risk so much for a social pariah, now a suspect for her friend's murder, especially one who deserved their lot? Surely Chloe's motives for seeking Diana out wouldn't extend so far as to warrant her embroiling herself in Diana's troubles on the girl's behalf.

And, to be quite frank, Diana was scared. She could admit that to herself. She didn't want to wait and see what Sucy had up those silk sleeves of hers, because it was obvious that whatever it was, Diana wouldn't like it.

Chloe placed her hand on hers and squeezed them comfortingly. "Tired?"

Diana didn't offer a reply. She was only numb. Part of her just wanted to curl up in bed and sleep for a thousand years, or at least until people got a little smarter and see that the Blytonbury Killer has been Sucy Manbavaran all along.

"I guess I should've told you earlier," Chloe began. "The only thing keeping me is that you don't always know how people are going to react."

Diana wondered if they were about to have this conversation right at this moment.

"Sometimes, people are okay with it, and sometimes the coolest people freak out." Chloe lifted her eyes from her lap to Diana's face, which was transmitting a neutral aura. "I'm... I'm not really into guys, you know."

"I know," Diana whispered. "Thank you for telling me."

The atmosphere had changed, Diana noticed. Chloe became more conscious of her body language and her level of physical contact.

Chloe tried to salvage it anyway. "I didn't want you to think that just because I was gay that I'd jump at you at any second."

Diana might have made her nervous and panicky. Perhaps being so close to the French girl, so vulnerable and intimate produced the strongest sense of courage.

"Chloe," she said. "Do not take this the wrong way, but I hope you will not associate with me after this. Not because you are a homosexual, there is nothing wrong with being one. It is because of a certain pattern. Become my closest companion, and you would die."

"Are you talking about the fact that you drove Hannah and Barbara away because you're scared they'll end up dead?"

"You knew?"

"Oh please," Chloe scoffed. "Anyone with eyes can make that connection. You ostracized yourself to save people and you have a point. Now that I see dear Andrew and Amanda died from whatever mysterious circumstances that fit the narrative. I don't know if H&B are really idiots or that they are putting up an act on hating you. Trust me, I know the difference between hatred and fake hate. And speaking of hatred, you and Sucy Manbavaran seem to harbor hatred that would fuel whole Britain for a year."

"Of course hatred is bound to bloom when I started fancying her lover then dated the said lover after they broke up."

"Are you by any chance talking about a non-binary person or a girl?" Chloe asked.

Diana lifted an eyebrow.

"Well I didn't mean to impose, but straight people don't usually use gender-neutral when talking about dates and exes."

Diana turned her head to look at her, really look at her. There was a reason why Chloe nearly rivaled her overall performance. And Chloe was great at showcasing it.

"You don't have to answer that." Chloe immediately added. "You could be shy, and I'm really imposing or that I'm wrong about it."

Diana smiled at that. The only reason why she's above Chloe at everything was that of her hundred percent certainty and confidence in her own answers and statements. Chloe had the tendency to back out. Perhaps the act of waiting and dreading intimidated her.

"Why are we heading to Lotte Jansson's flat by the way? Don't you want to go home?"

"In all truthfulness, I never want to deal with my aunt for now so I informed my head maid to relay my wellbeing to Aunt Daryl."

"Well, you can't blame her for getting mad. You're her niece."

"I know..." Diana said. "I am just... very delicate right now, and her guardian skills does not help."

A few minutes passed by, Diana and Chloe arrived at the flat building where Sucy lived. She had been informed days ago, that Lotte transferred here and lived merely next door to the Blytonbury Killer.

Diana led Chloe to the loft when a sudden black feline crossed her path. Diana recognized this cat, it's Akko's.

"Why hello there!" Chloe said. "Are you lost, buddy?"

"Is Akko back?" Diana questioned. It was odd to find the cat roaming around the building without Akko in sight.

Deciding that the cat had gotten lost, Diana carried Salem in her arms. She wasn't sure what room Akko lived in so she had a better chance of finding out if she would ask Lotte instead and entered the elevator. She supposed that Akko was looking for the cat at the very moment.

Diana gently stroke its fur throughout the ride. "We are going to go find your mother, okay?"

Salem blinked in response.

When the elevator doors open to Lotte's floor, Diana and Chloe heard the sound of a girl speaking frantically at a distance.

"Hello, sorry to bother you but have you seen—"

Diana then heard a gruff and disgruntled, "Screw off!" then followed by the loud echo of a door slamming shut.

They followed the sound into the corridor and found Akko standing in front of a door with a scowl on her face. Somehow, even with a twisted grimace, she still managed to look gorgeous.

As she advanced towards the blonde, Diana can hear Akko grumbling quietly, "Stupid neighbors and their goddamn motherfu—Salem!" Akko ran briskly towards them.

Akko was within the distance when Salem jumped from Diana's arms to hers. "Oh thank you! Thank you so much, Diana! And—a friend?"

Chloe crossed her arms. "Seriously, Akko? You don't know me? We share most of our classes together."

Akko's eyebrows knit together. "Oh, I remember your face, but not your name!"

"Akko, were you looking for Salem in every floor?" Diana interjected.

"Uh... no, I lost the little fur ball at this floor. I visited Lotte." Akko let out a tongue. "Thanks so much again. Where did you find her?"

"In the foyer."

Akko furrowed her brow. "How the hell did Salem get down there?" she looked at the cat skeptically. "Are you actually a bird?"

Diana bit back a laugh and shrugged. "Maybe she can teleport. How did you lose her?"

"I was going to bring her to the vet after a quick chat with Lotte, but the moment she saw the cat carrier, she bolted out the door," Akko explained. She pursed her lips and sighed. "I guess I'll just have to use the leash and carry her."

"It actually sounds like a great alternative, if you find it more suitable to comfortability. And you mentioned you were with Lotte, earlier?"

"Why yes, what about it?"

"I remember what floor she was in, but her room number—"

"She's the farthest room on the right." Akko provided, swift as lightning.

"Oh, alright. Thanks." Diana said.

Akko smiled, her eyes darted to Diana's lips before meeting her blue ones. She then leaned forward to kiss Diana's soft mouth.

"Oh Mon Deu!" Chloe gasped animatedly.

Despite Diana's sudden nervousness and the heat she felt rising to her cheeks, Diana managed not to break away from Akko's gaze.

Akko's next words brought Diana out of her reflection. "See you tomorrow?"

"C-certainly," Diana attempted to form words.

Akko giggled, forming a phone gesture with her free hand and inched it close to her ear. "Call me then."

She frolicked away, leaving two confused girls in her wake.

"What was that? A Japanese custom? But no, they bow excessively when showing gratitude. Diana? Are you gay?" Chloe demanded answers as she followed Diana who sped walked towards Lotte's room, trying to deflect Chloe's attention from her flushed cheeks.

Diana pressed the doorbell to the last door per Akko's instructions and it didn't take so long for Lotte to answer the door.

"Oh hello! I didn't know I would have visitors that fast after I told everyone that I changed flats." Lotte said, adjusting her glasses.

"Can we come in?" Diana asked.

Lotte regarded both of them. "What are you, vampires? Of course, you guys can, silly!"

"You're a Night Fall fan, aren't you?" Chloe asked, entering the threshold after Diana.

"Well, can you blame me, uh?"

"I'm Chloe."

"Nice to meet you, I'm Lotte." She said before inching closer to her ears to whisper. "Any idea why Diana's here after all the crap that happened at school?"

"None, I'm afraid," Chloe whispered back. "Maybe you can make her see reason. See what our words are, the strings we all dance upon."

Diana doesn't know if she knew she can hear them. All she knew was that the duo will accompany her and she's glad she does not have to ask them.

As they all settled in Lotte's coffee table, she asked. "So... Diana. How are you? You look so lily-livered."

The moment she heard the question, Diana spilled. "Amanda's dead... cause was asphyxiation due to strangulation. And I fear, I might be the one who killed her."

Chloe's eyes widened. But Lotte's face remained neutral, understanding.

Diana couldn't blame their reactions, for the image of Amanda slowly suffocating made Diana gasp for air, as if her hands were still wrapped around the redhead's neck.

"I also strongly believe that Sucy killed her." Diana chuckled. "Confusing, is it not? Perhaps she is just haunting me."

"Diana, don't say that. You were a hero." Lotte said.

"Then why in God's name is all of this happening now?" Diana asked, wrapping her arms around her once more, her scratch marks stinging once more, even under her sweater.

"You didn't kill her, Diana," Lotte said with a voice so soothing. "No matter what evidence they would find against you. I believe you're being framed."

"B-but my memory…" she spluttered, totally out of her depth with the conversation they were having. "I'm feeling pressure to believe something I don't trust, and that pressure is making me paranoid. I remember myself suffocating the life out of her. I couldn't tell the DI about this, I knew it would put me in a position."

"That's the devil whispering things to you. Making you think those thoughts are yours." Lotte said. "Don't listen to them. You know yourself better than those demons."

She nodded, her eyes growing misty,

"I'm sorry to dredge it all up," Lotte said.

"Don't worry," Diana sighed. "It's never far from my mind."

"I'll help you figure something out on your terms, okay? You're going to get through this, and I'm going to be there with you as you do it. Is there anything I can do for you?"

"Actually, there is one at the top of my head. I think I need your help in solving a mystery. How do you feel about becoming my secret informant for the time being?"

"Hmmm," Lotte replied, contemplatively, "I'm not afraid of the Blytonbury Killer, that's for sure, so why not?"

"Thank you so much, Lotte. What would I do without you?"

"Die, probably," she deadpanned.

"That's so dark," Chloe commented, reminding everyone she's still there.

"Alright! I'm ready to Nancy Drew the crap on all this!" Lotte yelled.

Diana and Chloe only gave her a blank look.

"What? Is there a complaint? I'm not your, Watson, Diana. All your Watsons die. I'm Nancy Drew."

"Are you sure you're not Belle or something?" Diana smiled.

"Belle was everything in all 365 books, but she was never a sleuth."

"Well, Annabel Crème could surely regard crime fiction."

"Perhaps!" Lotte began gushing before she cleared her throat and turned serious in a blink. "So what's our first mission, Diana?"

Diana crossed her arms and fixed her expression. Possibly too much that she feared she had become a little standoffish. "It has come to my attention that I need to shift my focus and brain work to the Human Regurgitator."

Lotte nodded. "I'm assuming anything from the net helps?"

"We can access the MET's website, Detective Inspector Croix unethically gave me the password."

"And you expect us to shut our mouths, right?" Lotte asked. "I'll go get my laptop from my room then." With that, she climbed the stairs to the second floor, leaving the two lonesome.

"I'm kind of pissed you didn't think that I would want to help you, Diana," Chloe said. "I have trying to comfort you all throughout and you're always so...withdrawn. I want to be your friend, but you always seem so afraid of showing any kind of vulnerability that it makes it hard to know what I can say without offending you or scaring you off."

Now that Diana wasn't quite so isolated, she wasn't as prone to stewing in guilt and grief. "Listen, Chloe. The reason I've been guarded around you is that I didn't want to spill it all on you too far too fast."

"Yes, I understand. I'm just one of the girls who saw the crime scene before informing the cops and the academy's staff, but Diana... see, the truth is, I think you're pretty great."

Diana scrunched her eyebrows at that and Chloe laughed at her.

"Seriously, Diana, I mean it. First of all, when you're not doing that weird Cavendish mask thing that you seem to do, you show us yourself. You're blunt and you're honest, and that's extremely refreshing to me than the people pleaser Diana I knew. You're also smarter than everyone. I've seen your work. You're innovative. You're the best at the whole rote puzzle thing, you've got brilliant ideas, and you communicate them very clearly.

"And then, there's the fact that you're strong as hell. It just rolls off you. I don't know exactly what it is you've been through over the past few years, Diana, but I bet it's been hell—and yet you still chose to keep coming back to school after everything that happened, and all the deaths, knowing full well, I'm sure, that people would hate you and try to make your life miserable.

"I really admire that you did it anyway, and part of why I came up to you in the first place was because I thought that it took real courage for you to make the decision to return to face everything."

Diana's eyes stung hotly and before she knew it, she was returning Chloe's embrace, burrowing her nose into Chloe's long pompadour hair.

"I'm not letting you deal with this on your own, Diana," Chloe told her, rubbing soothing circles into the sweater over Diana's back.

Diana nodded through her silent sobs of relief, laughing as an aggressive hiccough made its way up and out of her throat. She felt Chloe's chest shake with gentle laughter, and for the first time since she left the hospital, Diana didn't feel alone anymore.

"Thank you, Chloe," she whispered. "Thank you."

"I'm not going to die this time, okay?"

"Amanda promised that as well, but she still died."

"No one's dying on my watch," Lotte said. The girls jerked away from their hug to see the Finnish girl standing next to them, showing that she had been there minutes ago and didn't try to ruin their moment. "In my sigil of protection, no harm will come to you."

Diana had no idea why the metaphor struck a chord in her.

"But first, before we delve into tedious research," Lotte said, facing Diana. "Meanwhile, as for you... let's just hope a hot bath will bring you to your senses."

* * *

" _ **I think it**_ would serve you better if you would find a good lawyer to defend you," Chloe said, she was reading the UKN on her phone while watching Diana research on Lotte's laptop. "The O'Neills are pressing charges against you."

"They cannot press charge on an innocent minor," Diana said, scrolling down the website, skimming and scanning the case file to the best of her ability. She had just taken a hot bath and in all honesty, it did quite help her. She borrowed some of Lotte's spare bathrobe while waiting for her clothes to dry. "They technically can, but without evidence, the court would not be compelled to agree."

"I'm surprised you actually hadn't considered the possibility that Human Regurgitator might be the Blytonburry Killer who changed their murder design," Chloe said.

"It isn't the Human Regurgitator," Diana said without taking her eyes off the screen.

"What do you mean? Why are you researching her then?"

"I'm sure she has her reasons," Lotte said from where she was leaning against the wall.

"The Human Regurgitator is dead. She didn't just disappear 20 years ago, she died." Diana stated.

Two pairs of eyes stared at her in surprise.

"Detective Inspector Croix at the time was a student when she assisted the old DI a little bit in the Human Regurgitator case. She never told me much about it, except that the suspect was dead."

"So you weren't involved directly, I'm baffled," Chloe muttered sarcastically.

"How old do you think I am?" Diana asked.

"So why are you researching about the dead killer?"

"I'm looking up facts to discern possible patterns to coincide with the fact that Shiny Chariot might have had crossed paths with her."

"So you're saying, Akko's idol met the Human Regurgitator, got scarred for life and decided to hide in the shadows and assumed a new identity?"

"That is elaborate, Chloe. I fear I may have been rubbing on you."

You're also looking after some hints about how to get in contact with Shiny Chariot, are you? It's possible she's the person that is most likely to be in possession of the information we want."

"We can just give up on that," Lotte said flatly. "Shiny Chariot is the world's most famous magician, but also the most anonymous one, which gives him quite a lot of room to play hide and seek."

"I have long known where Shiny Chariot is and who she is."

"Where did you get that?" Lotte asked.

"I'm not in the position to divulge my source," Diana said.

Chloe stopped reading more news articles about Amanda's murder and stared at the laptop screen and found a different case file. "What had you discovered so far, Diana?"

"The Human Regurgitator... definitely is Sucy's mother."

"So you were the one responsible why Avery has been MIA?" Chloe asked her bluntly, her tongue sharp as always. She might have waited for the right moment to ask this question.

Diana nodded. "She is resting in the Cavendish hospital."

"How is she?"

"Blood tests had shown that Avery was well nourished and hydrated, a lack of a significant number of white blood cells indicated she was also infection-free. A relatively admirable accomplishment considering the nasty bruise Avery had sustained before her accident."

Chloe raised an eyebrow, a particular mannerism when she's showing distaste for her rival in the school's achievements, especially when she's explaining her statements in such a way.

A slight smirk wormed its way to Diana's lips as she continued. "X-rays demonstrated that her various broken bones had been healing well, and her multiple splints were well-placed and effective in their motion-limiting intent without cutting off her circulation. But there was something wrong. She was still feeble and weak. Like some sort of weird possession over her that hindered her to fully heal. Tests had been made, medicines had been given. Though what seemed to be a perfectly healthy body, she was still bedridden."

Chloe's eyes alerted. She shared a frantic glance to Lotte who nodded her head.

"There had definitely been some research involved in tending to Avery's injuries," Diana added. "And seeing as there was no record of anyone being admitted to a hospital anywhere in the world with injuries even resembling Avery's condition."

"Which means she's still sick," Chloe said.

"She is not supposed to be though! She has healed! But she is still chained to her bed!"

"Diana, sometimes... there are illnesses that modern science can't heal or even detect."

An upsetting image jostled for control in Diana's brain. She unhinged her strained jaw, preparing to speak when there was a knock on Lotte's door.

"Oh? Who could that be?" Lotte got up from where she sat to check on her new visitor.

Diana craned her neck to follow the bespectacled girl's footsteps. "Lotte, if it's Sucy, don't let her come in."

Lotte paused on her action and gave her a sly nod. She looked through the peephole carefully and blanched. "It's not her." She busted the door wide open to reveal a livid Detective Inspector Croix. "Why hello detective!"

From a distance, the older woman could already tell what was on the laptop's screen. "This is the limit, Diana. I've reached the absolute bitter end of my patience."

"Good evening, Detective Inspector Croix."

"I thought I told you not to look into your case, but I'm obviously going to have to hammer it into that thick skull of yours a little bit harder."

"Do you always insult a person's intelligence when you're trying to take care of them?" Diana asked sharply. "Because it's really charming, really gets the point across."

"It also seems to be the only way you can absorb a warning, Diana," she told her quietly. "Every time I try to be straightforward about one, you dismiss me outright, so I have to couple them with insults to get you to listen."

"So," Diana asked. "You found where I am using my phone's location. What do you need to tell me? What is the verdict?"

"They found skin underneath some of Miss O'Neill's fingernails, indicating she put up a fight."

Diana gulped. "Whose skin was it?"

"It matched your DNA."

Diana reached to touch the injury on her arms.

"Do you know what this means to you, Diana?"

"I did not kill Amanda, Croix," Diana said, her voice losing its cool. Her throat constricted as she pleaded. "It was not me."

"Perhaps in the heat of the moment, you did something. I'm sorry, Diana. I'm just doing my job. My superiors are angry for trying to protect you. You do know what this means for the both of us, do you?"

"Sucy Manbavaran knows the two of us to form a formidable team. She's getting rid of me. Finally. Be careful now, Detective Inspector, she might come after you too."

The Italian woman sighed, as she grabbed a metal device in her sleeve's pockets and handcuffed the young lady. "Diana Cavendish, I'm arresting you for the murder of Amanda O'Neill."


	36. Chapter 36

**A/N**

**After much deliberation, I finally decided to write Akko's POV. At first, I was so bent on following Sucy's and Diana's POVs. But as the story progressed on, Akko's POV needed to be written so that everyone could finally get a glimpse of her weird behaviors and further the plot.**

* * *

"Oh Akko, I would hardly recognize the child in you." Her grandmother said, a smile prominent in her face. "Apart from the length of your skirt."

That night, she had a video call with her family back in Japan. Her family was intrigued to hear from her for so many months of no communication. She has had a busy schedule as a graduating teenager in high school.

As they spoke their goodbyes and wishes of luck, Akko prepared for bed. Salem situated herself just beside her, purring softly.

In the dead of the night, she could hear the crickets chirping outside. Normally, their noise was a welcome interruption to the usually eerie silence, but this time the unintentional cacophony was just annoying. Somewhere in the distance, a mouse screeched and was immediately snatched up by a silent barn owl.

Even with all that, the newscaster's voice of tonight's news echoed to Akko's ears through the night.

" _An overwhelming evidence came to light that supports the fact that the Cavendish heir had indeed murdered the O'Neill's daughter. Theories about whether the 17-year-old girl is the alleged Blytonbury Killer has surfaced. The Blytonbury and the Metropolitan Police have yet to confirm or to deny the claims. Until then… we'll be updating the story as the investigation unfolds."_

Akko still couldn't believe that this was happening because of extreme jealousy. Before she met Sucy, before she met Chariot, and before she went to England, Atsuko Kagari was a total loser. She was all over the place, and she didn't have the traits that anyone might find attractive. Is it her fault that she's always at the bottom? Is it her fault she's so expressive because she wasn't raised in a strict household that seemed to have everything to other people's visions.

But now, she has grown. Became quite different than who she was years ago. Chariot was a great teacher. Lessons about fooling people for a living was a great practice.

Despite all the internal changes, Akko still behaved as she was before. A bubbly, overconfident and attention-seeking teenager, and preferred to stand in the limelight. She can be prone to being competitive and can demonstrate impulsive tendencies.

Akko, with her cherub-cheeks, had the poker face of a professional. But it will take a liar to know a liar. That was how she saw the changes in Sucy.

Sucy was born a liar, and Akko was trained to be a liar. All because Akko had been on a steady incline since her magician training. While Sucy started off with an advantage due to her experiences and now the Filipino was practically a connoisseur of deceit. Even if the situation didn't necessarily call for a lie, she did anyway.

She was unsure whether Sucy did it was out of amusement or sheer boredom, but given half an opportunity, Sucy would twist the truth into a pretty inaccuracy and no one would ever know the difference.

It was for half the semester when bullies began dropping like flies. Only days after that, Akko heard the first mention of the new serial killer responsible. At first, Akko thought it was a joke. It sounded like fiction. But, nope—there really was a mass-murdering psychopath with supernatural tendencies, going around and scything all the bad guys who had been so rude to Akko.

And there was that other thing… As of late, Akko had been getting the oddest feeling, as if she was being watched—no, followed. It could have just been her nerves acting up; in fact, that was most likely the case, but Akko just couldn't shake the feeling that somebody was constantly lurking nearby. The weirdest part was that the sensation always got more prominent when she was around Sucy—as if her best friend was channeling some seriously bad juju.

That was what Akko didn't get. Akko had been always the one to buy into Santa Clause or the Easter Bunny, but unless the Blytonbury Killer had a posse the size of the continental army, Akko didn't know how they managed to pull off so many assassinations at the same time without the interference of supernatural activity.

Then Sucy revealed everything to her via magic that linked both their brains together for a short while. She had been lucky she knew how to hide her true emotions. She was beyond frightened when Sucy showed her all the things the voodoo doll could do. She feared, that if she acted out of line, Sucy would have used her magic on her right on the spot. Ever since then, Akko paid attention to her intuitions as she had seen that all her bad vibes about Sucy were right all along.

On the very same day that Andrew Hanbridge died, she uncharacteristically skipped dinner and locked herself in her room. Chariot wondered about her behavior but she was thankful that her guardian didn't insist an answer out of her. The conscience of Thomas and his goons' death weighed on her like a boulder she's forced to carry over to a mountain.

All of these ongoing thoughts lead to her kneeling on the carpet, clutching on a metaphor of Sucy's dirtiest of secrets and trying her best to cope in other ways. Like practicing her poker face, in which Akko was good at. Although in a way, that has lead to more trouble.

"So what's the plan?" she wondered out loud as she walked around her room in the middle of the night. "What was I supposed to do now? What could I do? Come on, think Akko, think!"

Flicking through her deck of cards that she fiddled with whenever she was nervous, it was obvious that Sucy had already slain a considerable amount of people already—and there would probably be another added as the days went on if Sucy's current rate was any indication.

"Should I talk to her? Turn her in?" Akko asked herself.

It would be easy. The detectives from the Scotland Yard had made contact with Diana who seemed to be more interested with the murders than your average teen. Akko could just steal the voodoo doll and hand it over and claim to have found it accidentally. No more people would die and Sucy would be in a cushy jail cell.

Problem solved.

Except, what if the government decided to take it one step further and execute Sucy? Akko couldn't sentence her best friend to death—or a lifetime prison.

"Who was I kidding?" Akko pulled the ends of her hair in frustration.

She was incapable of betraying her family and friends. That was like going against every facet of her DNA. Fidgeting, Akko tapped out a rhythm on her knee cap.

She could try to throw the doll to the depths of the ocean, but Akko saw that the doll could levitate and talk. It could snitch on her. She could try to burn the doll, but then again, Andrew had already tried it and it didn't work. Unless it was holy fire.

Akko didn't know how to access the holy fire, so she did the next big thing she could do. Buy gallons of holy water and purify Sucy. It didn't work at all. It only slowed her descent to madness, but it was all in vain. Sometimes she even wondered, if it made things worst.

But it was the exact plan that was feasible. If Sucy didn't have her tool, how was she going to pull off world domination? No more deaths, the Blytonbury Killer would just fade into the background—and most notably, Sucy would be off the hook. But what reassurance did she have that Sucy wouldn't just start up again?

And then, there was also the distinct possibility that Sucy would figure out exactly who set her powers ablaze, quite literally, in the first place. Sucy was bound to be furious. Beyond furious, even. It was a foreign concept that Sucy would ever intentionally hurt her… but then she had changed. The voodoo doll was changing her.

Akko had no guarantee that Sucy wouldn't turn on her. She had read Sucy's mind, she had watched her memories. She knew how Sucy functioned.

She might have been up for nights that Chariot began to notice. Despite all her practice of wearing a perfect poker face, despite all the denying the questions if something was wrong, Chariot still caught on. There was no way she could keep a secret from Chariot. She was her teacher and guardian after all. Everything she learned about how to be a magician—to lie, to cheat, to fool and to hide while making people wear all smiles at the deceit.

Somehow, the French woman learned of Akko's plight and knew exactly how to get off the to-kill radar. Chariot told her that it wasn't the first time she came across a witch who used the same cursed voodoo doll.

Akko's dangerous situation eased when she decided to follow and support Sucy, but at the same time behind the Filipino's back, she was looking for a way to get rid of the doll. She wanted out of the relationship as soon as she agreed to be Sucy's girlfriend. She never thought that agreeing would place her into a pedestal with even more chains. She thought that being close to Sucy, she can have the chance to supervise her, and get rid of the doll called Loa.

However, it became pretty clear that Loa was a permanent fixture in Sucy's life. Chariot even warned her of her attempts to destroy the doll. So in the end, Akko grabbed the opportunity to get out of the relationship when the chance was given.

Lotte Jansson was a weird girl. Akko just knew the moment she saw her that the Finnish girl doesn't look like what she seemed at all.

If Sucy only knew the things Akko did for her, then she will realize how much she loved her. But Akko was too scared to tell her that she was trying to save her from the dark magic that plagued her, and most especially Sucy's own self—her descend to madness.

Sucy might get mad at her. Tell her that it's wrong to play with her heart like that, but can anyone blame her? Akko needed to do it.

There was manipulation involved and she didn't want any of that.

Akko knew the target on her back returned when she did so. She knew she gave Amanda, Jasminka, and Constanze their own spot in the guillotine and tightened the noose around Diana's neck after that. But even with the impending danger, she wanted to save Sucy. She even followed Charot's advice to meet other witches around the area, although Professor Lukić had not been quite helpful.

The sun rose, with its rays peeking through the window blind, making Akko grumble. She lost a good sleep once again.

Akko went out of her room with renewed determination, she was going to do her early workout regime, shower, study for school, practice her skills, and make the heavy feeling of dread and portent disappear.

After all that, Akko would float again, the way she used to. To be that vibrant jolly kid she showed everyone. She looked at her wristwatch before she managed to reach the stairs, her hand on the banister, when Chariot appeared from the kitchen, beaming.

"Why are you so happy?" Akko inquired flatly, ready to begin the trek to the building's small gym room any minute.

"I made up with my old flame, Croix," she replied, impervious to Akko's gloom. "She took me back."

It was only after the news had had a chance to sink in that Akko began to consider what would happen if the fight between Sucy and Diana actually had a winner. She cared for both of them and never would want any harm to them, for God knows how much. Akko had been putting that moment of realization off for a long time, but it had been in the back of her mind ever since the beginning of the year.

"You want to put Sucy behind bars?"

"Rightfully so, Akko." Chariot answered. "It's not right when the innocent suffers the guilty's consequences."

"But can't you see?" Akko asked, her voice rising. "The situation would actually benefit the both of them! Sucy won't kill Diana and Diana won't harm Sucy as long as she's imprisoned!"

"I think you're forgetting that the world doesn't revolve around you three." Chariot hissed but was able to make her voice stern. "What Croix and I will do will be for the greater good."

"Even if it meant sacrificing either one of them?"

Chariot's eyes softened, she cupped the shorter girl's face with tender care. "Trust me, Akko. Croix and I fought and disagreed about lots of things, but the only one we both agreed was that we failed to save ourselves, and our  _senpai_."

"Your s-senpai?" Akko asked. Her eyes nearly bulge out of her sockets when she saw her mentor swinging her bracelet. She stared back at her now empty wrist; she hadn't been able to feel it being stolen.

Even if Akko was trained to deceive and not to be deceived, Chariot was still able to trick her. People had to admire that kind of skill, and Akko still has long ways to go.

"We inevitably brought her danger, and we will make sure to make our vow unbreakable."

The silence stretched on for a while before Akko spoke. "There are more things you haven't told me, have you Chariot?"

Humor was held in Chariot's eyes. "I want you to know that we have decided to ask help from the Janssons."

Akko's forehead creased. She never trusted any other witches. Magic was supposed to be fun and entertaining. It should give the viewers adrenaline-charges, not fear and anxiety. Magic should also exist to help and guide, not where the mundane has no chance to win against.

Akko pursed her lips. If all of Sucy's enemies are now uniting to tear her down, then she has to act fast and save Sucy. Her own way.

* * *

 _ **To the stranger's**_  eyes, Sucy was simply playing dollhouse inside her bathroom even in her age. But instead of joy, Sucy was beyond pissed. She was about to steal the hair of the Detective who posed as Professor Cruz, but now she was declared missing.

" _Oh don't be such a grumpy shit. At least we have her underling's hair."_

"Wherever could she have gone?" Sucy asked as she tied the orange hair around Loa's neck and placed her inside a small cardboard home she constructed since dawn. "Could she have known I was coming after her and to protect herself, incognito is the only way to go?"

" _She's not wrong though,"_  Loa replied, comfortably sitting inside the little dollhouse.

Sucy began to fear the worse. What if Diana was only the beginning to her road to being her true potential as a witch? What if the Detective Inspector proved to be a much worthy opponent than a mere girl of her age?

She shook the thought out of her head. It was too terrible to contemplate. She would figure something out. She had to.

As Sucy gingerly settled herself, she rose her eyebrow with a question. "Any chance my Canadian puppet's sleuthing skills can track her?"

" _It's worth the chance."_  The doll chuckled deviously.

"And there's also another problem! I can't murder anyone in cold blood right now!" she complained. "The public now believes that Diana's the Blytonbury killer, which meant that I'd change my killing design to natural causes."

" _You grasped the consequences of what you did too late. What's the difference anyway? You will still kill people."_

"But..." Sucy grumbled, striking a match and a setting fire to her craft. "Not to anyone else. My murders couldn't be lumped together as the Blytonbury Killer anymore! I do admit that I'll miss the recognition after all this."

" _I wish I could understand human emotions more,"_  Loa said, dismissing Sucy's trivial complications as the dollhouse she was in burned and collapsed over her.

Sucy sat on the bathroom floor, ready to turn on the shower in case the controlled fire went wild. She also disabled the smoke detector in her room with the help of her devious doll.

" _So you're going to continue living the double life. What are your plans asides from the obvious?"_

"Now that Diana's out of the way, perhaps I'll still take her offer. This time though, I'll dream bigger and run for President once school restarts. Ever since the redhead's death and Diana's apparent imprisonment, the academy's experiencing a minor setback. I'll be the one who'll lead it back up... maybe, I don't know. I have no clear goals yet."

There was a thunderous knock through her front door. Before Sucy could properly react, it was expertly picked by an impatient person. Sucy staggered to her feet, ready to attack whoever unfortunate thief that decided to barge in like that when the door swung open to reveal Atsuko Kagari.

"I can't believe you," Akko said. "You killed Amanda and blamed Diana for it?"

Sucy kept her focus on the little fire in her bathroom while eyeing her steely gaze towards her best friend. "I told you I would make sure she cares no more, doesn't she?"

"I FREAKING CAN'T BELIEVE YOU!" she bellowed.

"I don't understand."

"That's because you want to believe I'm still the old Akko. That's the sad thing. You were friends with the old Akko, not with me. You don't care about the new one, the real Akko. You don't even want to know her."

"I could say the same to you. It's all Diana's fault!" Sucy screamed at her. "She's turned you completely against me! That's why you say this!"

"She's never said anything rude about you. I've just changed, that's all. Why do you always want to blame her for everything?"

"Because she's to blame for everything. If she hadn't befriended you, we would have had a wonderful year. She's ruined everything for me. I hate her so much. I should have killed her if I had the chance."

"You make me sick, the way you talk," Akko said, her face was wet with tears, she hadn't known she had started to cry. "I can't stand having you around me all the time, wanting me only for yourself. And killing every fucking person."

Sucy's eyes furrowed as her forehead started to crinkle.

"You don't get why I'm so upset, do you?" Akko stomped her way through the white tiles. "Amanda was your friend too! You don't care about anyone else but you and your interests, do you? If I didn't know better, I don't think you're enjoying this." She said through gritted teeth.

"Diana tailed me all the time in the hope of catching me but she never did. I caught her instead. Now don't give me that look, Akko. I took your begging into consideration. The Brit's still alive... and you didn't tell me to spare Amanda's."

Akko pressed her lips together, but argued anyway, endless fire in her eyes. "I can speak up, Sucy. I can tell the authorities about your witchcraft."

The subtle threat didn't faze her one bit. "Diana told everyone I killed those people, and no one believed her. Just like no one would believe you if you said I was a witch."

"Being a witch isn't the problem, Sucy." Akko grasped the Filipino's arm tighter. "It's the freaking doll! I don't think the doll is good for you and I think your relationship is destructive. You weren't like this years ago when we met! You weren't a homicidal maniac before!"

" _She does know I'm here, doesn't she?"_  Loa spoke underneath the ashes.

Sucy smirked, as the doll rose from the floor. Akko was taken aback at the magic object, temporarily forgotten that who she was badmouthing was with them.

"Who I was yesterday is laid waste to give rise to who I am today," Sucy said.

"How many lies have to be sanctified? How many consciences devastated? How many lives will be in peril?"

"As many as necessary."

"Diana's happiness is more important than her suffering."

"You and I have to agree to disagree."

"This won't make you human, Sucy. So much as you lose the ability to make yourself human and move on. Don't you feel a little bit bad? If it weren't for you, she wouldn't have suffered this much?" Akko asked.

"That's the way of the world, Akko. We were an irresistible force, she was a movable object. She moved. If you want to feel bad about something, feel bad about the fact that she's no closer to identifying my secret weapon than she was a few months ago."

"Both of you are my friends, why don't you just get along?"

"Oh yes, I'm a friend. I'm just your friend... and I'm so stupid to make the biggest mistake of falling in love with my best friend."

"Stop this, Sucy."

"I gave you everything, but you left me with nothing."

"They are rallying together, you know," Akko said softly in a warning.

"Let them form their allegiance, I'm going to kill all of them anyway," Sucy smirked, recalling her plan to kill everyone involved in her case at the Blytonbury Police and Scotland Yard either through natural occurrences.

"I don't mean the cops, Sucy. I meant the people who knew Diana isn't the killer."

* * *

 _ **It was**_  entirely her fault. All of it.

Diana wasn't sure how many miles she had logged, pacing in her cell, but it was impossible for her to stand still. She had to keep moving.

The ache in her chest was so strong and solid, she felt like she could pick it up and hold it her hands. She thought she would suffocate under the pressure of all these thoughts. Her breath came shallow in gulps and clammy with panic. There was nowhere to go, nothing she could do. She was trapped.

The cell was eerily silent. Fifteen minutes passed, then twenty. Diana couldn't take it.

She slammed her fist into the wall, hard, but she didn't feel any physical pain. All she felt was the weight of her own stupid, selfish mistakes piling higher and higher, threatening to topple down and crush her at any moment.

She never thought she could feel worse than she did after Frank died or after Andrew and Avery. But her arrest was the lowest Diana had ever been. She spun around in the tiny room, looking for something else to kick or hit. There were just her narrow bed and her chair.

There were three concrete walls and the fourth was bulletproof glass. Diana chuckled to herself, she didn't know she would be placed in solitary confinement and treated like a criminally insane child.

Diana fell onto the mattress and laid on her back.

"I'd like to see Miss Cavendish." She instantly recognized Lotte's angelic voice echoing from outside her cell.

She jerked upright when she heard loud resounding footsteps. Something was wrong, Diana was certain of it. It hadn't been 24 hours yet, and they are allowing visitations.

"To what purpose?" the guard asked.

"To check that her basic visitation rights are being respected. I'm a friend after all."

It simply took seconds before Lotte came into view which had been odd in many ways. It was evening, and Lotte was without a guest ID.

"How are you?" she asked.

Diana pursed her lips, fearing she might have gone mute for she hadn't spoken in 24 hours since she was taken to this glass prison cell. Her voice came out hoarse. "She can stab me too many times, but my soul remains intact."

"Your spirit is already breaking Diana."

"It had a crack since I was nothing but a toddler. I am still here. The only difference about me is that I am convinced of my general lack of trust in other people."

"Lack of trust in other people increases the need for religion. If you can't rely on others, you have to rely on God."

"I'm relying on myself. And at this moment, I have to confess that I don't know what is going to happen to me anymore." Diana said, merely gave Lotte a glance before looking away. "I'm sorry. For endlessly discarding my frustrations at you. I may have what others call a strong personality. Sometimes, without meaning to, I can bend others to my point of view. Like a magnet exposed to other metals. I have a tendency to magnetize people around me. Draw them to the alignment of my own ways."

"What the heck are you talking about?" Lotte asked. "You're no magnet, and I'm sure as hell I'm not a fork. So what? The great love of my life is a homicidal maniac. No one's perfect."

Diana's eyes widened at the revelation. "You have feelings for Sucy?"

"Well," Lotte shrugged. "I was actually referencing Night Fall, but yes it can be also because I like her. People naturally reference things all the time."

Diana chuckled at that. "Let's save them."

"Chloe's agreed to house you if you want us to break you out," Lotte said, shoving her hand into her dress' pocket. "Chloe and I, we have something you don't have control in."

"What?" None of anything she said made sense.

"You have become my friend, Diana. I suppose I owe you the truth." Lotte said, licking her dried lips. "Doom has been unleashed by witches. It must be averted by witches."

"I beg your pardon?"

"I'm a witch, Diana," Lotte said. "So is Chloe, and so is Sucy. But Sucy's using her power to aid her in murder."

"You mean you are all Wiccan?"

"You're a little confused, but you got the spirit." Lotte smiled pleasantly, and somehow it sent bone-chilling chills through Diana's back. "Chloe is actually enchanting the guards to deal with your CCTV footage. We can't have mundane people hearing and recording our conversation."

Lotte shot her a look Diana couldn't quite read, but it was enough to make her bite her lip nervously. Abruptly, Diana felt weak on her knees. She never knew that sweet and lovely Lotte Jansson could harbor such power.

When she spoke, her voice was strained. "So you use divination and alchemy? That is utterly impossible."

"There is a vast gulf between impossible and impossible to imagine."

Diana grabbed ahold of her own momentum and firmly stood, fighting her wobbly knees. "First of all, if you are witches, then why do you and other witches just let Sucy be?"

"We just let them be so they would let us be. But since Sucy hadn't let us be, and non-witches are now asking for our help. It's time to act."

Diana nibbled her lower lip, contemplating. "What do you have in mind?"

"You want the truth, above all else, and I want my fellow witches to follow the old sovereignty. So I have a proposition that may be of mutual advantage."

Diana nodded, the wistfulness in her eyes hardening into resolve. "How does she kill people?"

"Sucy tackles dark magic, Diana," Lotte said, through gritted teeth. "Dark magic is the forbidden art of witchcraft. Her brand of specialty is voodoo. Through voodoo magic, she has complete reign over the person."

A sudden probing headache drifted towards Diana. She held her head as a confusion of reality began to set in. Hanging her head, Diana heard herself chanting that it could not be true; this was the stuff of legend and fantasy. She lived in the modern world and these mythical terrors did not exist! "Ugh, why does that sound familiar?"

"It seems you've learned of this before. That pain in your head is simply the forgetfulness spell at work. Increased by your crazy disbelief." Lotte grabbed something in her pocket, but Diana couldn't see it well, like a sudden mist covering her eyes. "Let me remove the spell, Diana."


	37. Chapter 37

Diana's internal clock told her it was nine in the morning. She was still spooked about the existence of witches and witchcraft and the main reason was mainly her stubbornness to believe in such fairytales. Answers weren't retrieved much but more questions started to form especially when Lotte who had to remove some forgetfulness spell that was literally eating her brain alive.

After the successful counter curse, Diana had to sleep. Lotte's lullaby spell actually worked. It embarrassed her to admit that she had slept well for months.

Lotte left after that, but so far, she gathered that magic wasn't all that bad.

Now when she received another visitor, she thought it would be Lotte again, or Chloe to continue where they left off so they can spill everything about witchcraft, but found herself mistaken. The visitor had the ID of a guest clipped on her blouse. Diana knew for a fact that the French professor was no witch.

"I thought the Mets called for a hired psychiatrist to try profiling me," Diana said as Professor Ursula otherwise known as Shiny Chariot by her close peers came into view. "But I guess I was wrong... I am afraid I am losing my grasp on reality."

Professor Ursula acted like the statement didn't faze her as she sat down on the chair in front of Diana's glass prison. "The reality if this situation is Croix Meridies misusing the power of her office. She's desperate, and breaking the law."

"Whatever do you mean?"

Professor Ursula blinked, once, before donning her neutral expression, questioning. "Do you know what an imago is, Diana?"

"A psychoanalysis term."

"Correct," she pursed her lips in a small grin. "An imago is an image of a loved one, buried in the unconscious, carried with us all our lives. It is ideal. I have a concept of you, just as you have a concept of me and I'm here to see how much I've gotten right."

Diana grabbed the chair next to her table and positioned herself to face the older woman. "You appear to know more about me than you let on."

"Oh trust me, Diana. Despite the fact that you figured out my real identity, I still possess more information about you than you ever know yourself or your mother."

"I think I possess both the interpersonal and intrapersonal intelligence as I practice them quite often, thank you very much."

"That's not what I meant, girl." Professor Ursula said, crossing her legs. "I'm merely stating that you don't know your mother."

"What?" she staggered. "Of course I do. When I was young, my mother would tell me stories about her childhood and I would watch her as she practices medicine and study biology."

"Your mother is dead, Diana." The Professor from Luna Nova said coldly. It gave Diana the impression that the more she spent time with her, the more she seemed to be a stranger. "A girl's illusions are no basis for a woman's life." She continued. "There are years of her life where she doesn't have you yet and sides of her she never showed you. You don't know her as much as you thought you do."

"And you do?"

"I was 16 when I first knew her. So I don't know that much."

Diana firmly planted her feet onto the floor and placed her palms on her lap as she leaned forward. One of the recent secrets she learned from her mother was that Bernadette Cavendish healed the wounded Human Regurgitator. It suddenly frightened her to think that there could be more secrets that can tarnish the Cavendish name.

"If you are trying to tell me something, I suggest you do it before your visitation rights end."

"It's uncanny." Professor Ursula said, eyebrow shot to her hairline. "The more I look at you, I see your mother. I see her voice, her posture, even her mannerisms."

"You know my mother personally?"

The older woman nodded.

"I am my mother's daughter." She said as if the sentence had all the answers.

"You have more in common than you realize."

A sliver of hope pierced the dread that had been building in her chest, allowing her to breathe in as the other question she had since she was young might no longer remain a mystery, "Are you about to tell me who my father is?"

Professor Ursula smirked. "Not really, but we'll get to that, I promise you."

Diana's hope shrunk before it could even reach its maturity. She eyed the professor shrewdly, her years of experience had clearly sharpened her ability to assess people's statements.

"You never once asked about how your aunt's holding up."

"She has never visited or come to my company when she was called. I believe it means she does not care."

"Same, I'd rather not talk about familial dramas. We have a lot more to deal with. But first... we have company," Professor Ursula announced, beckoning towards someone out of sight.

Someone's footsteps interrupted their conversation. The person forced themselves to break into a jog as they walked swiftly down the corridor. When the person turned the corner, Diana groaned. The person was a brunette, but Diana recognized the way she held her chin and shoulders and the slight preference of the left leg when walking. Diana could tell this was some kind of confrontation and Detective Inspector Croix don't want to give the impression that she wanted to talk to her.

"What is up with the whole..." Diana asked, swirling her forefinger to her face, indicating the fake latex mask.

"I need to go and hide." Detective Inspector Croix said. "It's not easy to go ask help from your ex-lover... and I somehow disabled the audio that's recording this conversation for a total of 15 minutes."

"Is the conversation so secretive?" Diana asked. "You know what, I cannot help but think of the possibility that I was bait for the witches to come out in hiding. Did you seriously bring me here for that reason? Was I a bait all along?"

"You know about the witches?" Professor Ursula asked.

"As a matter of fact, they approached me last night."

"I would never call you a bait, but an incentive." Detective Inspector Croix did not beat around the bush. "Cops under me started dropping since Miss O'Neill died due to multiple accidents and illnesses. I wouldn't waste your time on all of them. The most imperative of them was Wangari."

"What?"

"Dormitory fire," she simply stated. "I was completely useless as a leader. What had I been thinking, pretending like I had what it took to inspire, to keep others safe? No matter what I do or where I went, people suffered."

A silent scream of grief and guilt surged up in Diana, but she held it in. It was beyond monstrous. No one should have to suffer this.

"Her roommates all survived though. I'm not convinced it was an accident. How about you?"

"I would say there are indeed grounds of doubt," Diana said. "And I am still pissed that you withheld information from me, you wanker."

"I might have." Detective Inspector Croix said with a slightly amused smile on her lips. "But it is all for the greater good, Diana. The less the people who knew about magic's existence, the better. After all, I really had no other reason to believe that Sucy Manbavaran placed a target on your head."

"But you knew who she was and what she was capable off... and you did not even warn me?"

"Diana, have you seen yourself? If I told you no, you would bend your way around the rules to find a hole."

Professor Ursula massaged her forehead, probably stressed out by the fact the conversation led a different path. "The question remains, Diana. Are you willing to cooperate with witches?"

"Certainly, and I would love to find out what kind of dark magic Sucy possess."

"Its voodoo magic—" Detective Inspector Croix said, having the same information as Lotte. "But not just any kind. The particular doll she uses is a cursed one; a doll that actually talks, flies, and curses even its owner. It's so messed up."

Professor Ursula's eyes shone wistfully. "We know what the cursed doll does to its person. I saw it firsthand on the Human Regurgitator—Sinag. Her sunken cheeks and dull eyes. The way her bones jutted; her cold skin veined with sickness. And she was a stubborn hellion, feeding on fury to keep herself sane, with a cause to hold on to, albeit a foolish, doomed one."

"The doll looks like a puppet, but don't let its appearance fool you." The taller woman continued. "The doll is the puppet master itself, and it would bury its way to a person's intrusive thoughts and drive them to act on it. What the cursed doll does is not coercion. It is persuasion. If the doll managed to persuade you to kill somebody, then you are entirely under its influence. It got Sucy to take a life so she would owe the doll hers."

The retired magician nodded, commenting. "Sucy bonds with Akko, it takes her away. Sucy bonds with Lotte, it takes her away. The doll saw to it that Sucy alienated all her friends and acquaintances and what's left of her foster family. The doll doesn't want Sucy to have anything in her life that's not the cursed doll itself."

"As I have told you before, Diana. When we were near your age, Chariot and I crossed paths with the Human Regurgitator. Sinag posed as a harmless circus performer, you see."

"The reason why I left the performing world was that I knew my life was in danger when I learned Sinag's secret. Croix decided to become a detective when I nearly died after our confrontation with her."

"And that's how Sinag met Bernadette. Your mother couldn't refuse to help the wounded. Of course, the Cavendish Head didn't know who she was, but she still offered her shelter while the whole Wild Hunt searched for her. Then a miracle happened."

"I'm having a hard enough time dealing with this world," Diana said, gnashing her teeth. "And you tell me she received a miracle when I have not?"

"Everything that can happen, happens." Professor Ursula said. "It has to end well and it has to end badly. It has to end every way it can. That is the way it ended for your mother."

Diana frowned.

"It wasn't your mother's fault, to begin with. Fate was cruel to her to let her fall in love with a criminal."

* * *

 _ **Sucy was**_ on a killing spree. Granted it was all a bunch of methods that the police would rule as various accidents and natural deaths, but still, it released happy chemicals to her brain, satisfying her emptiness with a rush better than psychedelic mushrooms ever will.

For one blissful moment, Sucy was happy. She didn't want it to end. She would forever protect it.

"Don't celebrate just yet," Loa called over Sucy's shoulder. "Your Canadian puppet hasn't found the missing detective."

Nevertheless, even Loa's spoilsport had no effect to dissuade her joy.

"I know it's too early to celebrate, but I can't help but be ecstatic!" She said breathlessly, bouncing towards Loa with a grin. "I feel powerful, Loa. Usually controlling my human puppet would only take a few hours, now it's been 24 hours and I don't feel any fatigue."

"And I am proud of you."

"It's quite a shame, really, if my mother was here—I have this inkling feeling that she would be proud of me." She scowled.

"Well, there's an overdue sentiment," Loa said with mock gravity. "To invoke your mother with the same distaste, you haven't changed."

Sucy let out a small sigh and ran her fingers through her hair. "I can't believe my mother wanted out of this. Killing people out of spite is the best!"

"She had a reason."

"What could possibly be that stupid thing that leads her to her own demise?"

"You see," the doll drawled as it pushed over the floor and hovered in the air for a moment before floating down to Sucy's hand slowly. "She stupidly fell in love. In order to be with her beloved, she had you to transfer the curse to you... all just to pursue it."

"Intriguing," Sucy said, a creepy smile plastered on her lips. "That's the line where our similarities differ, I will never do that. I will never be like her."

"Do you promise that?" Loa asked, hopeful.

Sucy didn't know what to make of Loa's weird tone so she retrieved her phone from the table and looked at the news articles she bookmarked. "The Human Regurgitator had a fascinating story. I would be a little proud of her, but she wasted everything. Shame she wasted it all on a stupid person."

"She chose that path, Sucy. I just hope you wouldn't choose the same."

Sucy squeezed her eyes shut, replaying her favorite moments as a witch again in her mind. Just to try to distract her thoughts from filling it with questions about her mother.

She will never be her mother. She wished so hard she wouldn't be her mother. She wouldn't bring a child into this world for their little heart to suffer and plunge deep into the cold, bitter world.

It worked for a moment, but the curiosity and pain inevitably returned with a renewed fury. "Loa, it has been itching at the back of my mind for days now. Who did my mother fell in love with for her to decide to leave all her past behind?"

They both relapsed into silence.

"Are you sure you want to know?"

"Well of course! There's a great possibility that he's my father, I want to know what I'm made of."

"I don't think it's worth mentioning now. We must focus on the now."

Sucy rasped, hitting her fist on the kitchen counter. "I demand you to tell me."

Loa sighed. "Fine."

She tried to slow down time for a moment. She deepened her breathing and willed her heart rate into a steadier rhythm. "Why are you taking so long to tell me?"

"Pardon me, Sucy... even if I was there, to begin with, it was hard for me to process all this."

"Oh just spit it out!"

"The answer might shock you."

"So?" Sucy quipped. "Do dermatologists hate him?"

If the doll had the ability to blink, it would have been doing it now. "I fail to recognize your references, Sucy. Your father was just a random hooker from a bar in the Philippines whom your mother killed after."

"That doesn't surprise me at all," Sucy said, after hearing her mother's promiscuity. "Then who the fuck is my mother's love, Loa?"

"Your mother got shot during the chase where the Met's special police force called the Wild Hunt nearly caught her. And a doctor-in-training nursed her back to health. The time period between them caused such a tide of events as they proclaimed their love for one another."

"Who is this doctor?"

"Her name is Bernadette Cavendish."

* * *

" **You mean** to tell me that my mother was in love with Sinag Manbavaran?"

Both women nodded, gulping air as if they too can't believe the fact even if they have known it for years. "And Sinag was equally in love with her." Professor Ursula provided.

"From what I've gathered, she tried so many times to kill you, but you always persevered." Detective Inspector Croix smirked, a little proud.

"You mean..." her voice came out all hoarse. "My delusions were right all along? There were people who died in my stead?"

"I'm afraid so. Some out of protecting you and some were mere coincidence."

"Is that meant to be a compliment?"

"No, not a compliment."

"I think we may have an opportunity now that we have the witches' support." Professor Ursula interjected. "It's clear this conflict was inevitable. It's just a matter of time before all of us drawn into a fight. Better we deal with it swiftly before..." she took a deep breath. "Before even more people get hurt. We need to get you out of here."

"Why do you think I must be the priority?" Diana asked she leaned so close to the glass that she almost feared her breath would fog it up. "Don't mind me here, stop Sucy at all cost."

"Thinking of others first before yourself, Diana?" The woman in disguise asked. "Do you think that's so righteous? Didn't you ever think that that's what led you in this prison?"

"I am innocent, Inspector. I am also able to hire a great lawyer. I will be out in no time, and who is to say Sucy would not swipe a third of the population from the safe abode of her own flat just for the fun of it while all those who stand a chance against her decides to free an insignificant girl?"

"Your humor and sarcasm are a cry for help, which is honestly alarming, to say the least. Particularly in reminiscent to a certain someone I know." She said, giving Detective Inspector Croix the side eye. "Besides, the court might have ruled differently, since we can't present magic as evidence."

"Maybe but so far, the courts have ruled in our favor."

"Not really, you know that bad things happen to good people all the time." The Detective Inspector responded dryly. "I've already lost so many people... I couldn't bear to lose you." She took a deep breath, and a new fierceness crept into her voice. "We have struggled against enormous tasks, but we have persevered. We are busting you out of here first. And to do so, we all agree that you need to convince someone else to help remain quiet."

"Yes, you should ask for her help."

Diana shifted her gaze among the two women, confounded, "Who?"

"The only person who was able to get close with Sucy Manbavaran—Akko. You need to tip the scales in your favor, Diana, because so far, Sucy's got all of Akko's support."

* * *

 **It was noon** when Professor Ursula stood in front of Sucy's doorway and Sucy tilted her head towards the door questioningly.

"Trouble..." Loa croaked, before turning into a hissy nag. "Kill her, control her, I don't care what you do, just attack her."

Pulling back, it took a moment for Sucy's head to stop spinning, but the urgency of the situation forced her to come crashing back to reality as fast as she could possibly plunge. Akko's guardian might have used her pick locking skills to forcibly open the door to confront her.

Upon approaching, it became clear that she was the one operating under some kind of confusion when two girls, Lotte and Chloe stood behind the older woman. Chloe stood proudly, while Lotte tried to make herself invisible with how small she was making herself.

This was more than just a confrontation, Sucy noticed. That was plain even to her inexperienced eyes, and who knew what kind of weapons they had hidden on them.

Sucy had an inkling feeling, but now her suspicions were confirmed. Chloe was her kind—a witch. And she's pretty sure she earned the French witch's wrath for constantly bullying her crush.

"What do you want?" she commanded.

"Can we talk to you?" Professor Ursula asked, apprehensively. Her air of austere demeanor fizzled out, "without the voodoo doll?"

"So you can try and capture me while I'm defenseless? No, thank you."

"Someone's a little cranky." Lotte greeted her with a cautious smile, her voice low so as avoid drawing the professor's attention. "Is something up?" she inquired softly, leaning forward intimately and taking Sucy's hand in hers. She tilted her head to one side, maybe knowing that Sucy wouldn't be able to resist answering her, giving in to her when she looked so cute.

Sucy's forehead creased, she felt a piece of crumbled paper inside her palm that wasn't there before. She eyed Lotte, sending her a silent question before averting her gaze to Akko's guardian. "I didn't know you were with Professor Ursula, and certainly didn't realize that Chloe was a witch until it's too late."

"Well," Lotte shrugged, squeezing her hand a little before she let go. "I told you there are witches amuck. Professor Ursula asked for our presence because she wants to talk to you."

"So she knows you all witches? What are you? Some paid shield then?" Sucy chuckled. "That's genius of her; two against one? I'm a little scared."

Lotte nodded before looking at her client. "I guess the doll can stay and listen."

"You're talking about me and I'm just right here. I could bury you, plebeian." Loa voice rang out amidst the tension.

"So," Sucy crossed her arms. She had a pain in her stomach, the kind she used to get as a kid when all the other kids at the orphanage used to pick on her. "What do you want from me?"

"We ask you to surrender," Chloe said straight to the point.

Sucy snorted in amused disbelief. "We are having this conversation again?"

"You are losing, Sucy." Professor Ursula responded dryly. "They will corner you in a few days. Akko might care about you, but I care more about her."

"That's okay; I know Akko's the only one who loves me."

"Not true at all," Lotte said, she wanted to put her arms around Sucy, to coo her to stop fighting, and to comfort her, but she couldn't. She knew Sucy would only pull away. "I care about you, Sucy."

"Lies!" she snarled.

"You could spare yourself, you know." Lotte continued. "You could plead not guilty because of mental incapacity. And in return, they will make a psychological profile for you. You could end this before it goes worse. Your childhood is miserable and a miserable childhood can render such children vulnerable to outside influences. Your fondness for the deceiving doll affected your mental health."

"Do you really think the court can dismiss me if you call it a mental health issue, a delusion?"

"She's right, Lotte." Professor Ursula said. "Sucy here is a psychopath and psychopaths are not mentally ill. What they suffer from is called behavioral disorder. Serial killers are able to distinguish good and evil at the time of their crimes, the law holds them responsible for their actions and thus deemed able to stand trial. Little by little, the noose around you is tightening. Before that happens, you're going to stop associating with the doll and its evil magic," she ordered, her stare boring into Sucy's eyes.

"If that happens, I can have Loa kill everyone."

Professor Ursula sighed, crossing her arms. "The magic doesn't work when you are killed, Sucy."

"What? H-how did you know?"

"I told you I know a lot about you. When you die, Loa becomes incapable of killing. It needs you as you need it. If you die without a child, she dies along with it. Its soul fades into nothingness; unless... the doll breaks its own curse."

"What are you insinuating?"

"The doll traps you to itself. You may think that you're the puppet master, but the doll is the one controlling you."

Sucy rolled her eyes, barking out a chuckle. "Are you out of ideas to defeat me? Because I'm telling you, Diana makes much more effort than this."

"The doll's here, isn't it? Why don't you ask it? About how much it lied."

"I did not lie!" Loa yelled, hiding as she plunged deep into Sucy's clothes.

"Or withheld information," Lotte added.

Sucy's face hardened. She grabbed Loa by the neck and pulled it out of her sweater. She stared expectantly for answers at the doll, but she was only met by a blank look. The minute she sunk her thumb to Loa's throat, the doll fell still, and Sucy finally released it on the counter.

"It seems there's a lot of be unfold." Professor Ursula tipped her head and spun around on her heel. "I bid you a good evening, Sucy. Enjoy being alone."

Chloe wasted no time following their leader. Lotte stared at her retreating companions before staring longingly at Sucy. As if she didn't want to leave her. Sucy didn't want her to leave too; fearing what might come if Loa indeed had something big going on without her knowledge. It would ease her troubles if she knew she wouldn't be alone in this. But then, Sucy thought that Lotte was her person in the room, but the fact that she came to her flat room with Professor Ursula, Lotte might be her person.

"Relax, Sucy, I'm not going to jump down your throat again anytime soon," Lotte reassured her. "You're not quite as big or bad as you would like to believe. Still respectable, though, don't get me wrong," she raced to add before Sucy could think to take offense.

Her hasty amendment had the desired effect; Sucy found her nervousness rather adorable. "You're forgiven. I overreacted anyways, I know that you don't like it when I pull that shit. It's just—" Sucy sighed in exasperated frustration, trying to think of how best to explain what she wanted to say.

"Listen," Lotte interrupted her hastily. "You've got to remember that you're you. You choose to have a small circle because that's the way you like it. You choose to keep to yourself to protect your already fragile heart, and I respect that—especially given the circumstances—but all the same, it's your choice."

"Right now, I don't have that kind of choice. What I'd like," Sucy said and the scorn imbued in the word wasn't completely able to mask its undertone of longing, "doesn't even factor into it. I'm lucky to have you as it is."

"That was almost sentimental, Sucy," Lotte teased lightly. "But for all that's worth, thank you for listening to us. We do care about you. Learn the truth about your doll. Demand that Loa would reveal everything to you. The doll can't disobey your orders. Make sure it tells you everything because it manipulates by omitting the truth." She warned one last time before sauntering off.

Sucy directed her attention at the voodoo doll sitting on the counter. "You heard her start spilling."

It took Loa several moments before it began to speak.

"Your mother was preoccupied with taking lives that she's having trouble wrapping her head around making one. When women become mothers, they undergo biochemical changes that affect the way they think."

"What are you trying to say, Loa? I thought my mother had me for selfish reasons."

"She did. But it all changed right when she had you. She didn't want you to carry the burden! She didn't want to continue using me so she tried to obliterate me out of existence." The doll stated all matter-of-fact, letting out a startlingly dark laugh. "But I am dark magic, her attempts backfired and she died in the aftermath."

Sucy shook her head in disbelief. "You… you fed me lies… about her, about me…."

"Half-truths, Sucy. I never lied to you. I merely withheld information. Oh, how your mother cherished you. The pangs of maternity made her want to be a good mother. She left you in that religious orphanage to be certain someone would make sure you would shun all things evil and become a holy protected child."

There was a pause.

"She miscalculated of course; she didn't expect that the same orphanage would lead you to me. She didn't know you would come back here in Blytonbury, heart filled with boiling anger and resentment. Your mother was the greatest witch out there. Her only ruin was that she loved... most especially you."

"She could have aborted me... she could have led the Manbavaran line die."

"She didn't want to abort you. Oh, how quickly humans form attachments to something that does not yet exist." Loa snapped; Sucy's head jerked back up at the hostile tone and she was surprised to see Loa glaring at her with anger and hurt mingling in her button eyes.

"Its maternal love, Loa, something you would not understand."

"I only want what's best for you." Loa said, trying. "Isn't that the same as maternal love?"

"Please," Sucy rolled her eyes. "Every person I kill is a personal victory."

"And every kill you make makes me prouder and prouder. Similar to a mother, watching her child learn how to walk, learn how to talk, learn how to write. You are just alone as I am Sucy. And we're both alone without each other. You can't throw me away. You can't destroy me while you live. The only way you can kill me is if you die without any offspring. And while I exist, you will never ever find love."

"So it has come to this, hasn't it?" Sucy grinned. "I would see myself wearing the same shoes as my mother. Either I could become selfish and provide you a female heir, or become selfless and die to make sure you would."

"Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, and sorry I could not travel both." Loa quoted, making Sucy furrow her eyebrows at the thought that the doll reads. "In the end, it's still just the two of us, Sucy. So... what will it be? I can't be used by someone who doesn't have the Manbavaran blood."

"So two converging paths, a road everyone else has trekked and a road less traveled. Which would I take?" Sucy asked.

"Two roads diverged in a wood, and I... I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference."

Sucy gritted her teeth. So hard she feared she'd lock her jaw. "No, Loa, you're mistaken."

The doll's stitch arched, confounded.

"I can forge myself a new road."

"How could you possibly do that without having a child? You know, only those who have the Manbavaran blood can use me."

"I know it's a stretch, Loa, but I can try. Hypothetically, if I were to transfer my ownership to my child, will my child have the right to curse me using you?"

"Your child may not, and cannot," Loa replied coolly. "It says so in the rules in the old tome that previous holders are immune to the next heir's magic. Why the question, Sucy? Are you planning to make an heir?"

"Perhaps, but I don't need to spread my legs for that. You see, I'm planning a devious one. I may have found a loophole in the rules of ownership. I'm going to transfer my authority of you to Diana Cavendish."

"How? Only those with Manbavaran blood can wield me."

But Sucy knew something that Loa wasn't telling her. "If I believe correctly, Diana Cavendish will escape prison and she will find solace in Chloe's apartment as a fugitive."

"How did you know that?"

Sucy's throat constricted as she stared at the piece of crumpled paper with words of warning that Lotte subtlety handed her. "Lotte told me. She has told me everything about Diana that she herself doesn't know."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Three chapters left before the end! I hope you guys don't kill me.


	38. Chapter 38

Diana had no idea how Professor Ursula managed to use the interrogation room for her meeting with Akko possible without the interference of the institution's guards or the coppers. Especially since Detective Inspector Croix was supposedly being MIA.

"Diana?" a voice called uncertainly, peeking through the door.

"Akko!" Diana's lips instinctively curved upwards at the sight of her. She momentarily forgot that she was chained to the table because she wanted to reach out to her.

The Japanese girl grabbed the chair and adjusted it so she can sit down. "I vaguely remember this. This was similar to when Sergeant Kinsley went nuts."

Diana smiled. "I was watching over you from the other side."

"Sucy told me that Loa was controlling the man all the time while she was here with us—oh! Loa is the doll's name." She quickly added when she saw Diana's frown. "You know about the voodoo doll right?"

Diana attempted to show a regal posture and expression. "I was briefed last night. The existence of a doll as a medium to be able to put a curse on people is a concept that is of little use in making me understand the nature of magic. They do, however, help me enter the mind that belongs to Sucy Manbavaran. Not a long walk, I confess. "

Akko stared at the wall beside them. "Chariot, Croix, and the witches are over there looking through the one-sided mirror."

That answered the question that lingered before Akko came in then. Perhaps, they enchanted someone to let this happen. It could have been an easier spell rather than erasing people's memories after they found out that their prisoner was out of her cell.

Akko chuckled. "I don't know why they would think it's necessary for them to listen to our conversation like this. So? What do you want from me?"

"Please help me, Akko." She said, no longer beating around the bush.

"I don't see how I can help you with your situation."

"I know you have the evidence to prove my innocence by presenting anything about Sucy Manbavaran. You are a viable witness!"

"Oh, Diana. I'm sorry, but I don't know anything about what you're saying."

"The more you play dumb, the less likely am I to help you," Diana said. "I know you are trying to find a way to stop her. Please, Akko. We know for a fact that she is obsessed with you. Who is to say she would not harm you someday?"

"I don't need your help, Diana," Akko said, refusing to meet her gaze. "At least, not anymore, I've managed to do fine on my own and I don't know why Chariot wants me to talk to you about this when clearly, they're planning to do you a jailbreak instead of fighting the pieces of evidence presented in court."

Akko pushed her chair backward, getting up to leave.

Diana had been told about the jailbreak, alright. Being guilty in the eyes of the general public wasn't the issue anymore. Now, it's more of a safety procedure so Sucy couldn't get to her. Everybody knows Sucy will use her dark magic to finally finish what she started.

But Diana still needed Akko's help—her cooperation. She never wanted to hide all her life. She never dreamed of living in a possible life to hide away as a most wanted criminal in the shadows.

"Do you not think that we could save a lot of people if you would just let us help each other?" Diana asked, desperate to convince her. "You know a lot of things about her. You can help me. All we need is a witness to send the investigation in the right direction."

However, Akko didn't want any part of it. She had by now reached for the doorknob.

"Akko..." Diana called. Her voice was rough and pleading. She hoped the girl would turn around and look at her. She wished for it to happen so badly.

Akko did. Her eyes shone with little tears forming as if it pained her so much to do so. Her lips quivered, a little bit hesitant to speak. "Do you have any idea what I've been through, Diana? Do you know why I'm doing this? All the acts I put up, all the secrets I kept, and all the holy waters I wished that would save her when we're supposed to be normal kids who should have normal high school problems? Can you explain my actions? Can you posit my intentions? What would be your theory of my mind?"

Diana nibbled her lower lip. Akko's friend was a psychopath, and she learned sociopathic behavior as a result to cope and to survive. Though, Diana wasn't going to utter that out loud.

"There's nothing right?" Akko strode towards her, planting her palms to the table's surface, hovering over the chained girl. "You have an understanding of my state of mind, but since you fancied me, your judgment has been clouded. You don't try to read pass me, Diana. You don't know me as much as you thought. That gave me the capacity to deceive you."

"You have no understanding of yourself either, Akko. You and I... we are just alike. Though, you exhibited the normal behavior of capture-bonding. It is a passive psychological response to a new master. It is been an essential survival tool for a million years. You bond with your captor, you survive. If you failed to, you are dead. We both became victims of Sucy Manbavaran, and my mistake was fighting her head on. I failed to realize that I was beneath her."

"If I know something, I am not a victim. Victims don't know the meaning of their suffering. I am an enemy or a collaborator, not a victim." Akko said.

Diana's throat constricted upon hearing all that. Her jaw slackened, asking. "Akko... did you use me to save your skin?"

"I was afraid. I didn't know what to do. The best I could do is to have Sucy be angry with someone else."

"Is that the only reason you agreed on a date with me?"

Akko stared at her with a look of mild surprise, and then something in her face shifted as if she was looking at Diana with a new light. Diana's heart throbbed painfully.

"Of course not," she said, truthfully. "I'm just scared, Diana. If I step forward to be a witness, I'll be held reliable too."

"I've never been a fan of cutting deals, plea bargains, reduced sentences too. I think they are a necessary evil—a dilution of justice. I'm especially displeased when they help murderers. But you and I were never murderers."

"Don't jinx it, Diana. We don't know for sure what will happen tomorrow."

Diana inhaled deeply and released a long sigh. As if it was possible to gain more weigh on her shoulders.

"It might look so selfish," Akko began, her cheeks trickled pink "But I do wish we can work out."

"After all this?"

"Well, if we both survive, I can be part of your hero's reward."

"Hurray, you'll get the girl!" Lotte spoke through the intercom, painfully reminding the two that they weren't truly alone. There were surveyors.

Akko giggled, a little bashful. "But all kidding aside, I realize that our predicaments are very different. And it was wrong of me to forget that earlier and snap at you for venting about the difficulties you're facing. Even if I didn't like the way you did it."

Diana didn't laugh, but a reluctant smile tugged at her lips. "I would never, I will do my best not to repeat those mistakes and believe me, whatever your still somewhat elusive reasons on why you act like so.

"You are a mature person, Akko." she continued pointedly. "I don't know why you would act, unlike your character. Was conforming to society's norm to be blamed? Despite all that, I am grateful for your friendship, and I really am. You have already helped me a great deal, even if it's just for the moment. But you cannot really blame me for thinking, however irrationally, that it is not going to last. I mean, have you ever thought about what happens after graduation? Assuming we make it through the year as friends? For all we know, you will go off and become the next Shiny Chariot of the world, and I will be lucky if I manage to get my aunt off my back."

"So what? You think that just because we might be a little busy after graduation, we're automatically going to drift apart?" she asked incredulously. "That's a load of crock, Diana."

Diana laughed loudly, albeit half-heartedly, at the absurd expression.

"No, I'm serious," Akko protested all earnestness. "When I say I'm loyal, I mean beyond loyal," she insisted once the other girl's mirth had faded, "As in steadfast, dependable, with you until the bitter end... that kind of thing."

There was a pause as she walked back towards Diana.

"But do you know what? I doubt you'll be able to take my word for it whether you want to or not, so I'll just have to prove it to you in the long term. What do you say to that, Diana?"

For several seconds, Diana didn't answer her, opting instead to stare at her own hands—or rather, at the handcuffs that hugged her wrists. She felt its cold metal and idly, while staring into its depths, she moved her wrist in a circular motion. Diana's eyes followed the movement as metal clunks against metal until a low hum drew her attention; she brought her focus back to her surroundings just in time to catch Akko watching her with an intensity that set her heart aflutter, much to Diana's chagrin.

I'm not sure I could if I tried, Diana thought absentmindedly, entranced once more by the color and perspicacity of the other girl's eyes. And, what's more, I don't particularly want to in any case.

She knew flirting with Akko would only bring about more of Sucy's jealousy and wrath. She knew that she could end up dead. Or even Akko. What if she wasn't strong enough to save her?

A flash of terror tore at Diana's heart, and she regretted she had been so foolish. She needed her strength tonight to protect her loved one. And yes, goddamn it, she loved that girl.

Aloud, she eventually replied, "I say that sounds like a plan, Akko," her voice at a lower timber than usual, "and not a bad one at that."

* * *

" _ **Alright,"**_ Chloe turned the doorknob and swung the door open. Her hooded companion quickly sprinted inside as she locked the door behind them. "Here we are at my apartment, pardon the place."

Just recalling that day, as Diana surveyed the living room and finally declared it adequate, her throat turned dry and her head grew quiet until she remembered why she was fretting about that night that was. Until she remembered Amanda's parting comments to her the day before.

"For someone who has OCD as you, this place sure is unclean for your standards.

Chloe rolled her eyes, sauntering towards the kitchen. "I actually hadn't lived in here for quite so long, the dust settled in. But I kept paying my rent."

In Diana's entire newly cautious attitude, she spoke. "Thank you, Chloe. For agreeing to keep me safe, it is fine that I could crash on the sofa for the night."

Chloe smiled and touched her hand momentarily, assuring. "That's not necessary. If you want to, I can stay here with you... tell Sarah and Elfriede that I need to go back for the time being."

"Would that not make it more suspicious that you are housing a criminal?"

"I'm a witch, Diana." She said, ironically. "I can use magic sigils to keep you from being seen by mundane people. Remind me in the morning to check on Avery. Lotte's a bit hesitant to help her, but she's a companion of mine and I never had the guts to check what sort of black magic was used on her until I do. Now, let me heat you some food."

Diana nodded and gave silent gratitude to the girl as she walked towards the kitchen. She was left to muse on herself, and that wasn't a good thing.

There was something really unsettling about walking and talking and sounding like herself, and then looking into the mirror and seeing someone who was most definitely not herself staring back. Diana was tied together with a smile from the earlier conversation she had with Akko, but it's coming undone. Of course, Diana was on edge anyway. She sat on the couch while Chloe whipped up some salad and hot tea for the night.

They dined in silence. Diana's thoughts began to wander. Chloe raised a perpetual brow and fixing Diana with a look of amused anticipation. "Whatever it is you want to ask me, Diana, you should just ask, already."

Diana sighed and returned Chloe's stare with her own exasperated one. "I want to know what went wrong between my mother and Sucy's. Do you somehow know?"

"Not quite," Chloe said, munching on her food.

Diana knew the topic died right then and there.

"What magic do you specialize in, Chloe?" she tried again.

"My family specializes in life magic," Chloe said. "Anything that prolongs life, adaptation, and survival, to be quite honest, I might know something that you don't about yourself and your mother."

"My mother would have benefitted from your magic. She died of a mysterious illness."

"Maybe, maybe not," Chloe smirked. "Wouldn't it be quite a shocker if your sisters with Sucy Manbavaran?"

"I firmly believe that might have been the case if our mothers did end up together."

"That'll be another set of rivalry in the parallel future, don't you think?"

Diana narrowed her eyes at the French girl, who clearly wanted to bring the topic of their conversation further away from what she initially planned. "So... you would not tell me?"

Chloe's face changed. As if the question ticked her off. "I fear that it's not my place. After all, I heard it from my two biological mothers. I told you our family deals with that." She added when she saw Diana's questionable look. "Maman gave Mom quite a fright when she told her."

Diana nodded slowly; resolve to firm the curve of her jaw. "Are you willing to tell me about my mother without a price?"

"No price. I won't tell you either way. You're still in shock, that's all."

"That is unfair of you, Chloe."

"It is unfair indeed." She returned her cup to her saucer a little bit too harsh. "Who could have predicted that you liked Akko?" she mused with distaste in her tongue.

"I do not know how to respond to that."

"Now, I know how Sucy feels. Jealousy can really eat a person up. But that's where Sucy and I differ. I won't go around threatening you or killing Akko."

"Might be because of your pleasant upbringing," Diana said.

"Who says I had pleasant upbringing?" Chloe asked, her tone rose as she placed a hand on her chest.

"My apologies," she swiftly added, never knew until it was too late that she somehow offended her host. "I did not mean to speculate or compare. Why are you all against Akko by the way? And I am most definitely sure it is not all about jealousy."

Chloe looked away from Diana, fretting her bottom lip between her teeth and staring out the window at the grounds. Diana felt her curiosity mount as Chloe's silence stretched on.

"I can't tell you all of it yet," Chloe began eventually, "As I said, it's not my place to speak of it, but I can tell you part. Is that enough for now?"

Diana considered her offer for a moment, before huffing, "I guess. At this rate, anything is better than nothing."

"Well," Chloe said, then sighed and brought her frustrated gaze back up to meet Diana's. "You're going to think I'm a wretched person."

Diana openly scoffed at that, drawing a small smile from her companion. "I doubt it," she drawled, "but by all means, try me."

"She could never have been what you wanted, you know. Girls like that, they're just not suited to people like you."

Diana lifted her eyes from the cup of coffee that had long gone cold and returned dully. "Girls like that?"

Chloe nodded.

"You do not know what kind of girl she was, you barely knew her." It came out more defensive than she had intended, but it did not seem to offend Chloe in the slightest.

Instead, she slid slowly into the chair beside Diana and kneaded her shoulder. "I barely knew her because she couldn't bring herself to do the logical thing. She cares too much for the wrong person. That says everything I need to know about her."

Diana shrugged her touch away coldly, suddenly irritated by her presence.

Chloe smiled sadly. "You only heard partial of my reasons and you now seem to hate me."

"I have no wish to hear it all now."

"I did it to spare you of negativity."

"Thanks, but sparing me of my feelings does little to help me at all. Every time I caught sight of my reflection, I recoil from it. Every action I took lead to destruction and death. Everybody feels like it is their fault, but we always, always never blame the doll. It's the evil we need to desolate first before we can even save anyone."

"Clearly I've made you upset." She chuckled. "At this rate, if we continue to, we might just ignite our old feud. Old habits die hard, don't it, Diana?" she asked lightly, trying to hide the fact that her heart was a drumbeat of mounting worry.

"Thank you for a warm bed and a warm roof over my head, but I won't have you badmouthing Akko."

Chloe nodded, retrieving her coat and keys as she headed out to the door. "There's already a protection spell around this apartment. No ordinary eyes can see you here, at least you'll be safe and the Mets can't find you. The Inspector gave you a new burner phone, hadn't she? Don't hesitate to call when you need me. Have a good night, Diana—and sweet dreams." She turned slowly, her long skirt swished around her legs as she left Diana, thoroughly chilled.

Diana tried to maintain some semblance of calm, despite the storm raging about inside. A warm apartment was no different from a cold glass prison. She was all alone all over again.

* * *

 _ **Akko had**_ been given a mission when she was advised by the Professor of Occult. "Grab the chance to get inside a witch's house, try to find their dark magic black book, do not try to open and read it or else the wicked curse that protected it will transfer to you."

She made sure that nobody was inside Sucy's apartment when she broke in. So when she chanced to see Sucy hurrying to head to god knows where. Using the lock picking skills she learned from Chariot, she got to her feet and grabbed her tools. Her sweat trickled down as she tried to go through Sucy's complicated lock. Akko cursed, she was certain she made marks. But it didn't matter at all. Once she will find the book, she will toss in into a fire and burn it until it turned to ash. That was the first step to hinder Sucy from learning more and more hexes and curses.

After successfully wrenching it open, she slowly latched it back. Taking a deep breath, she gave an overview of the place first, figuring there are better chances to find it inside Sucy's bedroom.

Akko nearly flipped when the flat room's doorknob turned. It was enough to make her whirl on her heels and brave the savage doll and its witch. But she was met by a caramel brown haired French witch who was equally surprised to see her there.

Chloe's eyes met Akko's with an air of hesitancy. Akko shuddered at the arrogance, which she thought that she was the first to think of this method into slowly stopping Sucy's schemes.

"What are you doing here?" her voice cut through the amiable silence and stabbed right into the other girl.

"Might be the same reason as you."

Akko's eyebrows knitted together at Chloe's calculated response. She shared the same authoritative disposition as Diana, shared the same background, education, and upbringing but despite all that, Akko didn't like how the French girl was unfriendly. "Should you be doing that?" she muttered between clenched teeth.

"I didn't mean to," she inhaled a lungful of air, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Look, I had a huge fight with Diana, and I am finally free of the dream of a perfect friendship. I never wanted it to come true. I wanted it to remain a dream and vanish the way dreams do."

"You must be exaggerating."

Akko felt her hand on her shoulder, and for a second, thought she was going to swing around and hit Chloe, the emotions within were so intense, even Akko found it impossible to predict what she would do next.

"Did I hear that from you?" she asked, challenging her.

Akko chortled. "That's true. My whole existence is the ultimate exaggeration. I can't help but care, that's all. So? Are you going to tell me what you guys fought about?"

"Well, you're certainly nosey, aren't you? Makes me really wonder why Diana fancies you so much." She tilted her head upwards, feigning to remember what was on the top of her head. "But if you insist, I gladly won't spare you of my bickers. First, I refused to tell her some information about her mother that she knew nothing about. Then, I expressed my dislike for you."

"Wow that's a shocker, you don't like me?"

"A functional sociopath like you? It's normal for people who can clearly see through your faux emotions to not like you."

Akko frowned, crossing her arms. "Yeah sure, I believe you. But what is it? Is there anything else that Diana doesn't know that I don't?"

"Well, that depends. Do you know that Diana's a clone of her mother? Bernadette created her by separating a small portion of her flesh and bones from her body and infusing it with my family's magic and made a great show with her having a lavender marriage with an eligible bachelor who signed an NDA?"

"SHE'S A WHAT?"

"Oh crap, you didn't know." Chloe dipped her hand inside her what seemed to be an endless pocket in her dress and pulled a collapsible wand. "I can fix this."

"BITCH NOOO!" Akko literally jumped out of the way. "Wait a minute, if you're here, does that mean Diana's all alone and unprotected?"

"Yeah, you weren't listening to me earlier, were you? But I placed a concealment spell."

Akko didn't hear her words at all. She also couldn't care less. The prominent thing replaying in her mind was that Sucy was headed off to somewhere with the doll.

In haste, Akko shoved Chloe out of the way, running headfirst to where Chariot was hiding Detective Inspector Croix.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let's have a supreme guessing game now shall we? What would be the ending? Just get your tissues ready and your weapons away from me :)


	39. Chapter 39

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: This is the longest chapter I've written yet.

In the dead of the night, there were unnerving sounds of sirens and hovering helicopters outside the apartment. Diana's eyes had shut open to see Sucy's face hovering over hers.

"We need to talk again," she murmured, moving away to give Diana space, "about our mothers."

"S-sure," Diana replied as she bolted upright to sit. The word she spoke sounded like fear. Diana had her burner phone under her pillow. One dial and she could bring back up to help her, but Sucy told her something and she could never deny that, especially not when Diana was desperate, as Sucy seemed too, now.

Wordlessly, Diana followed Sucy back to the living room, where the dishes were still dirty, all piled on the sink. Nobody turned on the lights, it was as if both of them were content to chat in a darkened room.

Sucy was holding a huge black tome, probably her book of spells. Weirdly, Diana couldn't stay angry, even considering all the loved ones Sucy murdered. It took too much energy to fight against their calmness all around the city of Blytonbury looking for their escaped alleged convict.

"How did you know I was going to be here?" Diana asked, breaking the silence first when it seemed clear that Sucy wasn't going to.

"I have my ways, Cavendish. Do you really think I have no connections?"

At the sound of that, it didn't take Diana too long to figure out. "Did Lotte tell you?"

"She did it out of love for me. I love her loyalty."

"Perhaps," she said as she drawled on the word.

"My mother is dead." Sucy hissed at her. "Akko was all I have."

"I did not take Akko out of your life, Sucy. The doll did."

"Now, you're pointing fingers," Sucy whispered as she revealed the cursed doll under her robes.

"Is it too late to ask why you do the things that you do?"

"I couldn't keep Akko back to where she was before—adrift, uncertain, at risk. I needed to have the power."

"You took quite a risk yourself," Diana said.

"I've always been willing to go to lengths to protect Akko." She derided. "Unlike you, Akko's the real angel. You're nothing but a second rate, trying hard, copycat. I want to rip off your fake wings and show the world your blood is just the same as everyone else."

As if on cue, the helicopters flashed a light towards the apartment's window. Bright lights peaked through the binds.

"They are still looking for you."

Diana tried jostling her mind into recalling that she was safe within the apartment walls; none of the coppers, neither the Wild Hunt nor mundane people can see her here and yet still her skin prickled with nerves.

"I am quite surprised that they all believe the trapped you have set me at all, but then again, my escape would destroy all doubts that I am indeed the Blytonbury Killer."

"But look at our situation right now, isn't it curious?" Sucy asked. "Fate and circumstances had returned us to this moment."

"I would say poorly thought-out collusion." Diana crossed her arms. "This is exactly the same situation where our mothers fell in love, isn't it?"

Sucy smirked. "If you can't tell, Diana, my voodoo doll is laughing right now. You know about Loa, don't you? I figured that all the neutral parties who chose your side had finally told you."

"They did."

"Did you come here to end this once and for all?"

"You look like you wanted to as well, considering you didn't call for help when you can, earlier. You know, I used to plan everything to protect Akko. Kill all her bullies, and people who hurt her, kill my foster mother and own the Adams money and possessions. It would be a perfect utopia. Until you came along. That's where everything went south. I planned everything intending to protect myself. You were a threat to me. Your intelligence and your fondness for Akko was a threat to my utopia. I did all my best to kill you, but you've got people protecting you, throwing out their life for you. You have all of those people who would do that for you. I have none. I only have Akko, and you'd even steal her from me. That was until I met Lotte and how she told me the best revenge was to see you break. And she was right, death is peace, while living is war. I would love to see you at war at all times, Diana."

Diana flinched and balled her hands into fists, but kept her expression neutral. She heard everyone's voices in her head, imploring her to stay calm, no matter what Sucy had to say.

"When Amanda came and did what she did days ago, I had faith that you would stop me. That you can stop me. After all, you were unstoppable, equal to me. What I lacked, is what you have, and what I have is what you lacked. I mean, the only person worth killing to me is you. Not Amanda, not the Mets, and certainly not the boys. You are the one who fights to keep the others alive.

"The glint in your eyes and the curve of your lips that you always have when facing the impossible was so satisfying to see, especially when that glint faded out, making you stand still in a plateau, in danger of falling. I, a vulture, watch you, circling you behind the dark clouds. I never knew it could fade more than it could, and I've seen it countless times, and how I have achieved success each time in making you suffer.

"And now, your eyes are telling me that you will overcome this, as well. You might have the others support, Diana. But would you let them keep dying for you when all you have to do is to die and I'd stop? They won't die because of you anymore, the pain, the guilt, the sorrow would stop. Tell me, Diana. Why does it seem like despite everything, every damage, every blow I gave to you, you still have the will to follow through, and the resolve to step forward?"

There was a distinct strangeness in Diana's limbs and inexplicably longed to move closer to Sucy. She felt torn. Her body rebelled in revulsion and fear while something she couldn't name pulled her closer still; as if she shared some bond of loneliness with Sucy. The angst of unfulfilled dreams and desires seemed all too understandable.

"I suppose that is not obvious to you, is it not?" Diana mocked, refraining to smile when she visibly had the upper hand in making Sucy feel inferior. "Does it keep you up at day, wondering how I am able to live while others have died because of me? But worry not, I will spell it out for you. The answer is simple. What keeps me forward, are the many words given to me by the people I hold dear. The ones who have died, the ones who have lived—they have saved me, encouraged me, and pushed me. They taught me that doors would stay locked unless I move forward and search for the key. To not let the void fill me in. Their words gave me the will to take action."

Sucy rolled her eyes, as she massaged her forehead. "I didn't know the answer was stupid."

"Do you actually believe them when they told you that our mothers were lovers?" Diana asked, all of a sudden, catching the Filipino off guard.

"I do believe. Even if I wanted to deny it, there are so many things it would explain. It all makes sense now."

"Ever stopped and thought that it could have been better if my mother simply stopped following the family's virtue and told the cops of your mother's whereabouts?"

"Not really."

"My mother once said that courageous actions do not have to lead to tragedy. I have been courageous, and I have you see possess that trait too. Let us end things here, and call it a truce—again, please. This time, let us make true to our words." Diana's sweat turned cold as she waited for Sucy's reply.

The Filipino merely stared at her, unblinking, as if she was contemplating what to do with her or chanting a wordless incantation to attack her. "Hey, Diana, am I evil? Am I considered evil with the circumstances of my inheritance?" Sucy inched closer towards her. Diana's lips quivered to speak, but the girl hissed aloud. "Don't answer that, I know that's how the world will measure me, but... are society's principles in the right? Aren't they just a fabrication so those who deny their deepest desires can show that they are good people? I judge my own actions and justify them."

Sucy shoved the giant book to her hands. Diana cautiously looked at the oldest leather-bound book that was still in a bright condition she ever held, flipping through the pages, unable to read some foreign words written in it in faded ink.

The moment she stared at the pages, every muscle in Diana's body felt like it was on fire. Her shoulders were rubbed raw. Her calves and thighs vibrated with exhaustion and threatened to give out any second.

A malicious smile plastered in Sucy's face. "Diana, you are right. Let's end things here. I reject being punished."

Sucy squatted down low. Pulled one knee into her chest, and with all her strength, kicked Diana square on the side of her kneecap. Harsh words came out of her lips as her leg most likely splintered under her, and she dropped the book beside her, and herself to the ground like she had been shot.

Diana curled herself into a ball, but Sucy wasn't having any of that. Sucy sprawled her and had her pinned to the ground.

"You're going to suffer, Diana Cavendish! Suffer! If not by the voodoo doll then by my hands!" she held a dagger on top of her and struck towards the neck.

Diana was able to halt it in time, now both girls struggle for reasons important to them—one to kill and one to live.

"Basically anything that you own or came from your body could be used against you. There was a story that Loa told me, about my grandmother. She can even hex you by just walking towards you. She will utter a chant in Latin and then blow air towards you, and the only way to deflect her hex is to pray the Lord's Prayer and one Hail Mary. The black book that I handed to you contains all the spells and secrets and rules of my family's witchcraft, and a curse has been placed on you the moment you read it."

"You have set me a trap?" Diana asked. "How many more will you have to do until you are satisfied, Sucy?

"Your innocence in my own brand of witchcraft will lead to your downfall," Sucy smirked. "And besides, the process is still ongoing."

"What?"

Sucy re-claimed the knife and flung it across the room. Due to shock, Diana was unable to stop Sucy from seizing couples of the hair strand and tied it around the voodoo doll's neck. Diana bolted to her feet to retaliate, but in a flash, she fell face flat on the hardwood floor. She wrenched a gasp, and the air she tasted was full of dust. She pushed herself upward with a feeble groan, her body trembling.

Nevertheless, Sucy made sure that Diana was situated on the ground. She grabbed a vase on the counter and placed it on top of the doll, unknown forces caused Diana to gain thrice the gravity she had.

She lied there, unmovable. Her entire being twitched with the recognition that she was prey for the beast that was without mercy. She could feel her heart begin to rabbit about in her chest as if it would break free to save itself. Her legs began to shudder with the urge to run even as she felt her hairline grow damp with tension and fear.

It dawned on her that she was the Titan Atlas cursed to carry the sky forever, and would be crushed to death on a single slip. It was maddeningly heavy. The only thing she could feel was the panic flooding her veins.

Diana tried to scream but was unable to produce any sound. Another knot formed in her already clenched stomach as Sucy continued on her procedure. It would happen any second know. She knew what Sucy was about to do.

Her thoughts of misery halted when she heard Sucy ambling over to the fridge, surveying its contents. "Did you know... that the powers of black sorcery may be gained after a practitioner learns the methods of malign magic, and establishes a relationship with a spirit that supports this magic? There might be 13 witches family left in the whole world, but there can be more if they will all learn."

Diana tried to push off the weight off of her, screaming as she did so. In her failure, sweat trickled down to her face, her vision losing its focus. "W-what are you are you trying to say?"

Sucy pushed a button in the microwave, defrosting some meat she found in the refrigerator. Her eyes widened with malevolence. "I'm trying to court the favor of malign spirits with food containing no salt, of course. It's a complicated séance so it would please me immensely if you would shut the fuck up."

At first, the small bell began to ring in the back of Diana's mind but as she looked around at what Sucy had done, the tinkling shifted into a cacophony of cathedral bells. Diana felt her skin ripple across her shoulders.

With no sense of time, Diana watched in horror as Sucy neatly piled the raw meat on the floor, beside her. If Diana hadn't known any better, she was sure that Sucy was about to cook her.

Sucy began chanting words in Latin with candles lit all around them, her voice sounded far off as the clanging roared around her head. Then even closer the sound rippled across the floor; strange and unknown it pierced the night. It was a cry of some sort. A song of longing which seemed to waft through the air. It wasn't a musical note, nor a voice rising in a joyful hymn but something otherworldly.

Diana cast her eyes towards Sucy as the night cries sounded again. It waxed and waned but still, Sucy didn't stop her unsettling chanting.

The call came yet again, louder and more triumphant then was cut off as if the source of its sound wished to hide its location. Strange ululating cries next came from the east. It reached their ears seeming different and far closer than the first unnerving sounds. It was a clarion call and for some unknown reason, Diana sensed that it was a call to battle. Diana strained her ears to identify the sound. All she could surmise was that it was not a lone creature that now announced its' presence in the dark but rather marshaling forces that sought the death of some other animal in the night.

It lurked just beyond the reach of the candles and shied from the light. The rational intelligent part of her knew that she was making a fantasy out of the strangeness of the evening while her skin prickled with the knowledge that something was there; waiting with an unholy hunger and Diana didn't have to see to know it was there.

Her unease deepened and yet in that last burst of song, she felt a sudden odd, queer chill traipse down the back of her neck. The sensation as she recalled was much like what one would expect should a ghost reach out to trail cool fingers along one's nape.

Diana's blood turned to ice as the shadowy figures crept closer, their expressionless, masklike faces, coming into chilling focus. But nothing was more terrifying than their bloodshot red eyes, coal black skin and razor-sharp long claws. Every few moments, another ear-ringing shot ran out, followed screams, or worse, silence. Her spine was coiled and cramped. Her legs were numbed. She attempted to kick, just a little force but then her leg erupted in excruciating pinpricks.

The malign spirits had spread throughout the room, searching for signs of food as they gobbled everything up, leaving strange ashes on its wake. It was unclear to Diana what kind of curse they can be laid out. She tried to brace herself for devastation, but the scene before her was still like a punch to the gut.

Diana's pulse sped up, goosebumps prickling on her arms as the villains hovered over a hapless body. She looked death straight in the eye. On the other hand, Sucy stopped speaking as she spread her arms out like a soaring eagle, offering herself to the unknown beings, and for a minute there, Diana feared that they would both be eaten alive.

A piercing scream erupted from Diana's throat as a rush of molten heat flare up through her body leaving wicks of pain as they all started to bite her and suck her life force.

* * *

 _ **Diana was**_  alive and conscious but badly injured; there was blood coming from somewhere on her head, and her face and shirt were drenched. The spirits Sucy called upon had all dispersed after doing her dirty work. And the golden hair which she tied around Loa began to turn into ashes.

Loa's control on Diana faded. But Sucy wasn't in any hurry to hold her down, especially since the girl was weakened. Diana was doubled over in pain, gagging, and coughing. She couldn't speak, but she looked up and locked eyes with Sucy. There was a pathetic, pleading look in them that gave Sucy satisfaction.

The Brit tilted her chin higher, and clenched her fists, inhaling sharply through her nose. "W-what did they do to me? What did you do to me?" she demanded.

Sucy glared. She looked paler and her cheeks more hollowed after she offered some of her blood to finish the exchange. "Bet you rue the day you started crossing me, Diana." her whole body relaxed as she turned the blonde over and placed her foot firmly in the center of Diana's chest, pinning her down. It felt good to see her trapped like the rodent she was.

A powerful, satisfied feeling coursed through Sucy, but something else awoke in her too. It wasn't an emotion she was used to, she didn't know she was still capable to feel it. Even though everything, she recognized it right away. It was a pity.

"Who would have thought that you and I would have been sisters if our mothers ended up together?"

"W-who says we couldn't be sisters now?" Diana sputtered.

Sucy studied Diana's dirty and bloodied face. Her hands were clasped together, trying to lift the foot off her, and begging.

"H-help me, and I'd forgive you…"

Conflicting emotions surged through Sucy—her desire for vengeance and the deep-seated knowledge of what could have been if they were brought up together. She wouldn't grow up in an orphanage, Diana would have someone else in her life besides her antagonizing aunt and cousins. Her brain was already full of awful memories she'd never be able to shake. The possibility of having memories with Diana Cavendish as a sister certainly won't mean that circumstances would deviate from this moment.

Diana didn't deserve a place in her heart or in her mind, to begin with.

"You're going to rot here, Diana." She spat to her face and began to chuckle darkly. "There are no miracles! No one will help you. We did it, Loa. Diana Cavendish now owns you."

" _I definitely can feel the power shifting. Blood Transfusion via magic..._ _you are the first to pioneer this operation successfully._ _"_

"I think this is goodbye now."

" _It definitely is."_

"Aww, don't be sad, Loa. I'm sure Diana is a worthy master."

" _Oh, I'm not sure about that. You hate her."_

"What?" she barked out a laugh. "My opinions should not define yours?"

" _But your opinion matters so much, Sucy."_

Sucy's eyebrows became one line as she stared at the doll questioningly. "What do you mean?

" _Lotte Jansson was right about one thing, Sucy. You should have demanded all of the truth from me."_

The color drained from Sucy's face, and she almost looked inhuman in the cold, gray light left by the opened fridge. "What? That wasn't all?"

" _I am the omission of verity, Sucy. One more question about the truth, then I would have revealed to you something that might destroy your trust to me. Do you have any idea what it is, Sucy?"_

Gently…Loa was being so gentle. But Loa was never gentle. Loa was a killer, and a liar, and a—

"D-did you kill my mother?"

" _Yes, I did."_ The doll began to glower as it floated on air.  _"Such a shame, Sucy, I was rather looking forward to seeing you finish yourself off. But, I guess this will have to do."_

Sucy kept walking, to the front door for her chance of escape. Loa doesn't stop her, but she knew the doll was three steps way ahead. Her throat bobbed as she swallowed aloud, the fear clawing at her. "Are you going to harm me, Loa? You know you can't. You told me that yourself."

" _The rule states that my new owner can't harm the previous owner. But since my new potential master hadn't accepted me yet, I am unofficially bounded still. Left to wander alone using what's left of the energy I sucked off from the previous master. I have the temporary energy to live and I have the temporary power to harm you."_

As if on cue, her lungs caught on air. Every breath she exhaled was warmer than usual, and she felt as if she swallowed a lump of live burning coal. "No," her voice deepened in rising rage as her knees collapsed, hitting the floor. "I will not go down like this, not with a traitorous shit like you." Sucy cried frantically, as she shook her head. Several more involuntary coughs escaped her throat, and Sucy felt that metallic taste flood her mouth.

And that damn doll laughed at her.

" _You can't even talk, can you?"_  Loa's mocking voice taunted.  _"Well, here you don't have to."_

Sucy was trying to comprehend what the sentient doll was saying, but everything seemed muted and her vision was blurry, like one of those paintings done by an impressionist; the basic premise was there, but when she tried too hard to concentrate on the details, her mind began to hurt. She felt like she was floating…but Loa was still talking, and Sucy forced herself to concentrate on Loa's voice.

" _You just have to listen and watch as I finally, after all these decades, be able to fulfill my lifelong revenge."_

Sucy strayed a hand to her hips, for the knife she carried. But the weapon was gone entirely, she berated herself for throwing across the room. Even if she had it, it was useless. The only weapon that can stand a chance against the voodoo doll was anything holy.

She had no weapons at all and Loa knew her dilemma.

Loa grinned, the stitch white and wicked.

Sucy eyed the condiments at the counter. If there was a slight chance there could be salt, she could be safe. She could stand a chance.

"Why are you doing this, Loa?" she questioned, it was a brash show, her forced nonchalance. Her eyes dart, quicker than before, not over at Loa but at the counters so she can move when Loa move, run when Loa lunge.

" _I WAS A HUMAN WHO ONCE ROAMED THE LAND OF THE LIVING. ABLE TO FEEL, ABLE TO BREATHE. UNTIL I WAS CURSED TO RESIDE IN A DOLL TO SERVE COUNTLESS GENERATIONS OF MANBAVARAN BLOOD! I WAS CURSED TO SERVE THE DESCENDANTS OF THE WOMAN I DESPISED SO MUCH! AFTER SHE STOLE EVERYTHING FROM ME, AFTER SHE DESTROYED MY DIGNITY, SHE TURNED ME INTO A PLAYTHING!"_

Sucy's heart pounded so loudly she knew Loa can hear it. She clutched her chest, trying to contain the beating, but Loa's button eyes traced over her in a way that is too familiar and too close, despite the distance between them. The doll focused on her throat, on the vein pulsing with all the fear.

Loa's chest area wrenched open, revealing a strand of puce hair. A hair which is the same color as her own.

Sucy gasped. "Y-you kept—?"

" _My apologies, Sucy."_  Loa interrupted her train of thoughts.  _"I don't have anything against you. It just so happened that your mother had irked me for trying to destroy my soul. And yourself because you're a Manbavaran who finally gave the chance of revenge."_

"Y-you manipulated me. You made sure everything leads to this."

" _As you have manipulated countless others. Like the wretched Manbavaran you are. I'm merely using your own malevolent tactics against you. No hard feelings, Sucy."_

Then Loa began chanting. A spell Sucy had never heard of.

" _Kill the messenger, kidnap the princess, murder the king, and rape the kingdom. Down into thy soul from the eyes. Open your mouth and spill your sin."_

Sucy stumbled back, surprised, almost tripping over Diana who laid unconsciously at the ground. But she recovered quickly, the salt container tight in her hands as she continued forward to spread the salty mineral towards the doll.

But before her arms swung at Loa, pain overwhelmed her whole body. She fell down, resorted herself into a fetal position as if a protective stance could lessen the pain.

Sucy craned her neck upwards. It was entirely different to become the person at the end of the razor. She was used to being at the other side, where she was the one pointing the blade, calling the shots, and watching as the life escaped her victim.

It was never a thought that strayed on her mind that the position could be switched.

As Sucy lied there, fearing for the worst, she inhaled harshly as her tears stung. She wanted to be saved, but all she saw was color, dark stains coming out of her like black butterflies, and this infectious thing swilling in her that she can somehow witness with senses that aren't sight, were about to spill over her edges.

The pain, thank goodness wasn't as insistent as before, and Sucy felt her eyes close as body started to relax. In fact, Loa's voice wasn't as insistent as before—Loa was still talking, but the voice was far away and growing fainter with each passing second.

Loa's voice has grown fainter as time passed, but the doll never truly receded. Sometimes Sucy wondered if Loa planted a seed in her, leaving it to bloom even after its disappearance. Sucy doesn't know if cursed dolls can do that. But it's an easy explanation for the murmurs and the mutters that rattle around in her skull.

Sometimes it could be just memories. But Sucy woke up far too often from an uneasy sleep, the words ringing in her ears, for Loa's voice were simply a product of her own mind. Loa was here with her still, whether she wanted Loa to be or not.

Her hands were cracked and raw, her feet swollen and aching. Every inch of her was in pain. And all she could think was more. Anything to distract from the dark thoughts that infected her mind like rot. Anything to make her forget her situation.

Sucy's stomach lurched as she was spun onto her back and launched to the side onto the leather sofa.

"Ah Sucy!" The faux-angelic lilt made Sucy want to vomit. "This is what goodbye should mean. Thank you for giving me this chance. I promise you that I'll take care of your body and your dead foster mother's riches."

"It's over, Sucy!" Somebody banged the door open, revealing stoic, calm and deadly Atsuko Kagari. She stood firm, silhouetted in the narrow opening. Her black cat stood beside her, hissing at them, her tail and all of her furs standing.

Without blinking, Akko slid through and shut it behind her. Something gleamed in her hand, flashing in the dim light—a knife. Thin and small but sharp enough.

"I've tried so hard to protect the two of you from each other. Yet look at what you did."

" _Akko..."_  Sucy called, her voice came out hoarse from the doll's stitches. It felt so weird.  _"That's not me..."_

Loa smirked a second, knowing Akko was clueless, before sprinting for the other side of the room and burst into the window at a chance of escape.

Akko's cat immediately lunged towards the impostor. Loa shrieked at the needle-like claws that landed on the face, trying to pull the cat's grip. "GET THIS FUCK OFF OF ME!"

With disregard for other living beings, Loa managed to remove the furious cat off and tossed the feline out the window. Salem's wail could be heard as she fell and would surely land on all fours.

Loa winced. Sucy did too, for there were multiple deep lashes on her face. There was another deep bite on her cheek that was nearly chunked off.

Akko was faster than Loa, but she followed at a languid pace. Haunting her, teasing her. She could run her down at any second, but she didn't. She was livid.

"Who are you?" she demanded.

"I'm your worst nightmare." Loa laughed with gusto with the cracked joke while holding onto the wound.

Sucy heard the shuffle of reluctant footsteps and then, abruptly, the sofa shifted beneath her and the pale, red-eyed face of Akko slid into her vision.

"Sucy?" Akko gently held her small humanoid form, raising it close to her eye line.

Sucy saw herself in Akko's eyes, reflected as a doll. She saw Diana, Lotte, the Professor, and the Detective. All they did to get here, in the middle of the end of the world. Sucy lied and was lied to, betrayed and was betrayed. She hurt many people and so many people hurt her. Sucy wondered what Akko saw in her eyes when it has nothing to reflect. A grim reminder that she now has a button for eyes.

" _I'm sorry, Akko."_

"It's okay…" Akko replied as if she heard her. "It's okay, we can fix this. I can fix this."

* * *

 _ **When Akko**_ saw what Sucy had done, she couldn't believe it. Though it took her a while to figure out that the Filipino girl standing before her wasn't Sucy at all, and that Sucy was turned into the doll, then her blood went hot red.

Akko knew if she stepped forward, she'll have no weapons at all. She wasn't sure if the imposter had the ability to do magic, so there was no shield, no guarantee she can fight unscratched.

Yet fate was kind to her. She saw the knife glistening from the floor, and she swiftly picked it up. It felt suddenly heavy. She could just drop it, leave the blade and run.

She could let her live. Or she could kill her. The chance was easy and so different.

Akko held her ground, her grip tightened on the steel. Her mouth felt dry when she demanded. "What did you do to them?"

"I did nothing to Cavendish. To Sucy, I think it's obvious." They said. "Sucy's ancestor gave me this wound. She locked me away, drained my ability, made me live like a wasting ghost."

"Akko be careful! That's the spirit that resides in the voodoo doll!"

Professor Ursula and Detective Inspector Croix revealed themselves from behind Loa. They entered the vicinity through the window, catching Loa off guard. They mirrored Loa's cautious movements, refusing to let the wretched villain escape through. The lethal dance was achingly slow, and they never broke their stare. They don't even blink, walking on a tightrope over a pit of wolves, barely keeping balance. One wrong move can result to be attacked by fangs.

Loa went deathly still, face white as bone. Not even the icy eyes move. When Akko took another step, coming within arm's length, Loa doesn't seem to notice. Akko balled a fist at her side, bracing herself.

Slowly, Loa blinked and Akko saw nothing in her.

Loa was empty.

And somehow, Akko could have just imagined if she were still herself a year ago. It was undeniable that some piece of her heart would break for someone so irrevocably lost. But a lot of things happened recently, and Akko, could not give a fuck.

"Before you kill me, aren't you a little bit it curious as to who I was?" Loa asked, tipping her head like some curious puppy.

"A human bitch," Akko snarled. "I don't need to know anything else."

"It won't end here," Loa murmured, voice low and smooth. "It took me centuries to steal a body, and I intend to use it to live my remaining days."

"You did WHAT?" Akko replied, showing her teeth.

Loa sneered. "Where are your witchy companions? How come they aren't around?"

"There was a minor setback." Detective Inspector Croix said. "Despite what perspired between closed doors, love is to be blamed. The witches are coming, and they can undo what you've done, demon!"

Loa rolled their eyes. "Very well, death is a better alternative than living as a cursed doll anyway. Take my word for it, girl. Sucy will become miserable until she loses what's remaining in her so-called-humanity."

Akko almost expected Loa to apologize, so she lowered the knife but she suffered the repercussions when Loa jabbed at her throat with a closed fist.

"AKKO!" Professor Chariot and Detective Inspector Croix instantaneously pulled Loa away from her as the momentum sent Akko sideways.

The women kept Loa pinned. Loa growled beneath them, trying to force them off, and exhibiting unusual strength and vitality. Loa bit them, hard.

Akko winced at the sight of the clamping down on Chariot's fingers, and the clawing of long nails on Croix's hand. Screams pierced Akko's eardrums along with a bizarrely sound of flesh hissing.

"Akko!" Chariot yelled despite the burning of her hand. "Capture her! One of the witches can return Sucy's soul back!"

Loa pushed through and pried both women's grasp off, biting where it is a must, until Loa was free. The flesh surrounding Chariot and Croix's bitten wounds were dissolving as if Loa's saliva were pure sulphuric acid.

Akko immediately searched the pantry to look for anything to neutralize the corroding flesh of her companions, mentally cursing herself to remember what sort of kitchen ingredient can be used as taught in her chemistry class.

Suddenly Loa's hand was around Akko's throat, squeezing without any restraint, crushing the air from her windpipe.

Her neck ached, bruising beneath Loa's fingers as blood vessels burst. Akko can barely think, her mind narrowing to the knife still clenched in her fist. She tried to raise her arm again but Loa's strength and weight above her made it impossible.

"I never liked you, girl." Loa hissed, cold breath washing over her face. "I always never liked those people whom Manbavarans loved. But listen here, girly... I'm never going back to the doll. You can't make me! I'm not going to, you hear me? I rather die than return!"

Tears prickled at Akko's eyes when she realized this could be how it ends.

"You can kill me, drag my soul away, but it still won't end any of this. With the body dead, the original soul cannot return. This body will become a corpse! I am well aware of the pain you bear, girl! The pain of knowing that fate is inescapable—that a happy ending, does not truly exist; for the darkness of the sinister hands, shall always reign supreme."

There was a surge of magic that strike Loa's back and whirled on the spot, her gaze flitting around wildly in an attempt to find their aggressor.

The witches arrived, their brooms discarded on the floor. Loa was met with a fuming Chloe and Lotte suffering from visible red handprint on her face while holding onto Salem.

Honestly, if Akko's able to, she'd slap Lotte on the other side of her cheek, and then thank her for rescuing Salem.

Lotte immediately sang words of healing for the wounded Chariot and Croix. Salem hissed once more when she saw Loa.

On the other hand, Chloe's face hardened. She brandished her wand, opening her mouth to cast another spell. Loa was struck once more by a brilliant streak of light. Unable to scream and too shocked to think of trying anything else, they growled at her.

"Quickly, bind her!" Akko commanded.

"I'm trying!" Chloe said as she sent another wave of magic towards Loa who deflected it skillfully.

In spite of Loa's best efforts, she was only one against five. Loa knew they have no leverage on them. They hadn't known Sucy's acquaintances will show up like this, as evident on their face. They might have figured that after their lifelong revenge, they would be long gone and the people would arrive in the aftermath of the chaos they wrecked.

Akko didn't think how or why, but Loa lunged after her once again. They were able to seize the knife from Loa's hand, and just swung wildly towards Sucy's throat—the stolen body that Loa inhabited.

Gasping, as blood sputtered out of the wound. The taste of the blood poisoned her mouth as Loa's eyes—no, Sucy's eyes fade.

It was Akko's turn to scream.


	40. Chapter 40

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait! Here’s the last chapter!

"You took care of me even though I'm not worthy of it."

Before she had much time to ponder what was exactly going on, Sinag was continuing.

"Will you take care of her for me... when I'm gone?"

"Of course, Sinag... The child may not bear my blood, but she is yours and therefore, will be my child."

"Please take care of my Sucy if you haven't heard from me."

"You do not know if you are going to survive, do you?

Sinag turned away. "None of my ancestors who tried to destroy the doll has ever lived. All the spells backfired. Don't worry, about me. You saved me, Bernadette. Twice. Let me do this on my own."

"Courageous actions shouldn't end in tragedy. So I beg you... come back to me."

Sinag smiled sadly, but she stayed strong for her. "Of course I will; I'm just saying I don't know how long it will take, and I don't like the idea of you here alone and unprotected."

"You should at least leave the child to me."

She placed a caring hand on her womb. "This child needs another form of protection that neither of us can provide. She needs to grow up religious or surrounded by those people; we've talked about this, Berna."

"I know," she gulped. Bernadette despised the idea that they possessed neither of the only defense to ward of the Manbavaran evil magic. If she knew this would have happened, she would have gone to the Philippines, unearthed Southeast Asian Magic and study them or even go back to her old faith, the religion she was born in. Yet as Sinag always say,  _nasa huli ang pagsisisi_ —regret is in the end.

"But I am afraid. Not just for me, but for the both of you."

"You should be afraid. It's natural to be afraid." Sinag said. "Before I leave, I want you to have something." She reached into her pocket and withdrew a necklace with holy beads and a cross. She handed it to Bernadette, making her take it. The fact that Sinag can hold onto it without repercussions has said a lot about the lack of malignant forces within her. "Whoever you are afraid of. Don't be afraid to use it."

"I am fine. But be careful though. I want to see you, at the very latest."

Sinag nodded firmly in agreement, smiling, and trying to reassure them both. "I think I can handle it."

"Okay. Go get them."

With a wink and another smile, Sinag sprinted off on foot, leaving Bernadette and the two Luna Nova high school girls behind.

As soon as she was gone, it didn't take a minute for Bernadette to return to her composure. As if just a few seconds ago, she hadn't said goodbye to the woman she loved dearly. "I want you to do me a favor, Chariot, Croix."

"Anything," one of the girls said, eagerly, but the redhead looked distraught.

Bernadette grasped the holy relic tighter. She has refused to wear it around her neck. "Sinag will try to destroy the doll, and if she does so unsuccessfully, the rosary won't be able to protect me."

"We can ask help from the Church." Croix yelled, "Or any religion in fact!"

"No, the Church doesn't want me, not after I confessed my sins to the head priest."

"W-what did you do?"

"I had promised Sinag I'll protect her child if she never comes back, but I know I can't fulfill it. So I took some drastic measures. I contacted the witches from France. They will arrive shortly."

"What some sort of shady business are you having with them?" Croix asked.

"I'm going to clone myself, use my other self as bait to the doll so I can fake my own death and live as a different person."

"That's too risky. We don't know for sure if all will go accordingly. What if the doll won't take the bait? What if it will still find you?"

"I don't have an ending yet. No one handed it to me and no one took it from me yet. But if worse comes, then I trust you to take care of the other me."

"Yes, I will. Chariot and I promise." With some anticipation, she looked at Chariot, who was looking at her with a kind of indecipherable emotion. "Won't you, Chariot?"

Chariot nodded hesitantly.

With a gentle smile, Bernadette ruffled both of the girls' hairs. "The witches told me that there's a huge possibility that if we clone myself, it will take years or merely hours for her to grow, whichever route it will go, this clone will be my child. And it will take a while for her to process everything. We have the deep-seated need to interact with our children. It helps us discover who we are."

Taking a quick glance at the horizon, Bernadette scanned her surroundings but found nothing of interest or importance. It was a crisp and clear night, and the rustle of the leaves in one of the trees, unusually loud at this time of night, sounded somewhere in the distance, but it was probably a cat or squirrel or something equally mundane.

"I have to hurry and meet them there," the Cavendish Head muttered as she left them and called for her Chauffeur.

Silence settled in the room. Breathing heavily at the thought of the unknown future, both Chariot and Croix took a half step away from each other, each taking the temporary lapse to catch their breath and regain their composure. After only a few minutes that actually felt like hours, Chariot broke the awkward stillness.

"Croix?" she inquired softly, gathering up her courage to look her in the eye.

"Yeah?"

"I don't want, any of this. The doll is cursed and everyone who is involved will die!"

She blinked before shaking her head quickly in disbelief, still digesting what Chariot had just told her. "But we can't just leave Bernadette! She entrusted us with a mission. We promised her!" Croix's voice was rising, a hint of panic discernible.

Chariot paused, her eyes growing ever wider as more time elapsed. She looked back at Croix, almost on the verge of tears, but her self-control which was once amazing was now shattering.

Croix leaned over and put her hand on Chariot's shoulder to reassure her that everything was under control. "Shh, it'll be alright. Just try and relax."

The redhead recalled the sharp pain in her temples and her lower neck when she was pricked with a needle. "You haven't seen the horror of the doll! You haven't felt its magic on you."

"Chariot..." she started, softening her gaze as to not frighten the girl. "Sinag was very sorry for trying to kill you before, you've seen the genuineness in her eyes. She's changed. She's in love."

"She can't be easily redeemed, Croix. And you're crazy for trusting her so easily!"

Her shaking shoulders indicated she was crying, and Croix stroked her hair, this wasn't the first time she had actually seen the girl show any kind of vulnerability. So she exactly knew what to do and what to say in order to make her feel better.

As Chariot rested in Croix's arms, her sobbing now reduced to a series of hiccups, Croix's brain was frantically trying to work out what had happened. But no matter what scenario Shego was able to propose, the result would always end up the same: Chariot was traumatized.

The concept of not being in control of your own body was something alien to Croix, as she had never been once subjected to the whims of the voodoo doll's magic. She also thought about how frightening it must be to not be in control of one's own body and the thought of dying from an imperceptible pain from an otherworldly force. She cringed mentally and squeezed Chariot in a tighter hug. "All I wanted was to save you. I even vowed to help in any way that I can to destroy it. I'll do anything. Anything I can! Anything to help your healing process."

"The scar's still here, Croix. I'm not going to be easily mended. I need to be far away from the doll as I can be."

"What are you going to do?"

Chariot trailed off, and Croix could sense there was an unasked question still lingering in the younger girl's mind. She let Chariot go, and looked into those confused red eyes. She looked back at her, and Croix could tell she was mentally debating whether to say a particular demand. She opened her mouth before quickly closing it again.

She smiled down at her, urging her on. "It's okay. You can tell me anything."

"We could disappear now. Take new identities. The doll can't find us. Tonight. We can leave a note for the ones we will be leaving behind."

Croix swallowed. This was the statement she was expecting, and this was the statement she was most afraid of answering. Wanting to say no but having to say yes. That's just how life went. She thought about how easy it would be to tell Chariot that they can run away together. It was a tempting thought.

Her teal eyes met Chariot's and found an expectant expression gracing her face; Chariot was waiting for a confirmation.

Croix took a deep breath and chose her words with the utmost care. "Forgive me, Chariot. I do believe that I'd rather stay and fight. You can take a break and be safe."

Her eyebrows stitched together, her red eyes having a sudden flare. "Are you implying that I'm a coward for running away?"

"I said no such things. I said you're taking a break."

Chariot scoffed. "Why do you want to stay? Bernadette and Sinag, they can fend for their own! We've known their secrets. We've kept their secrets. This is enough; this is the best we can do for them!"

Unable to form coherent reasoning, Croix managed to look at her with tired eyes. "I guess this is how we do our separate ways. Take care, Chariot."

* * *

" _ **A lot of**_ Diana's friends and acquaintances from school had visited her already. Miss Avery has fully recovered and will be out in no time." Chariot told her. Instantly making Croix's train from memory land come back to the present.

"Perhaps this means we'll be adding her to more of Diana's visitors soon. Everyone who visited Diana had been so sweet." Croix replied, "Especially Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum."

"Croix," Chariot growled. "Miss England and Miss Parker aren't twins."

"Not even half-siblings?"

"We don't know for sure." Chariot let out a chuckle, smiling a bit before it faded entirely. "Akko's still nowhere to be found."

"That one's preoccupied."

"No one can blame her." Chariot said as she grabbed the newest bouquet Chloe sent Diana.

Chloe promised to send a new batch of flowers every week and never once failed. She didn't need to do it but she insisted.

She gave the bouquet a rinse under the sink. Smiling as she heard the exasperated sound of Croix opening the door for another visitor dropping off a get well card and began untangling the flowers from the clear plastic wrap and myriad ribbons. Producing a vase from one of the cabinets, and with an almost practiced ease, began to skillfully arrange the flowers.

Smiling at her finished work, she made her way towards Diana's bed to place the flowers on Diana's nightstand, wondering where exactly Chloe was hoping to end up with all of these gifts.

"In the end, we couldn't even protect them, less their children." Croix mulled over.

"You have saved enough people, Croix. In spite of our best efforts," Chariot replied, giving her the reassuring squeeze.

"A ceasefire isn't permanent. The cycle can continue." Croix gritted her teeth, thinking of the future generations of the Cavendish if Diana were to continue her legacy. "In the end, even if we took separate roads, the outcome is still the same. We failed the promise we gave to Sinag and Bernadette."

"At least they didn't die. That's an upgrade."

"Yeah sure, Sucy won't ever like the fact that she's bound to Di—"

"Could you enjoy being alive for one damn second?" Chariot asked.

"Chariot," Croix finally muttered, prodding at her with tentative fingers. "We failed them. We still failed both Bernadette and Sinag. We managed to keep them alive, but for how long? They won't live at all."

Chariot's eyes connected with hers for a long while, until she looked downwards, head heavy with all sorts of feeling. "I know."

Shame and sorrow battled in equal measure, as well as apprehension and relief. For a second, Croix thought she might actually throw up. But nausea passed, and she opened her eyes again to find that nothing really changes even if time went on. History repeats itself and the old and wise will get to watch it unfold all over again.

They both knew this would happen. They both knew Sucy and Diana were beyond their help. It doesn't stop the pain, though.

"What now?" Croix whispered.

"What now?" Chariot replied, turning away.

Croix stared at the window, the sky spotted with haze and weak sunlight. Minutes stretched and passed. They don't speak. No one came to see Chariot or called for Croix to pull her away and go back to work. She almost wished someone would.

Until Chariot's fingers moved, brushing against Croix's. "I'm sorry about all those years ago. You did nothing but protect me and everyone around you, yet I was being unreasonable."

"No, you're not. You were traumatized. You needed to get away. We have an interesting relationship. We respect each other. There are certain issues we don't agree on, and usually, we end up fighting over them. But, I do care for you ever since."

"I'm glad everything worked out for the both of us, despite everything that has occurred around"

"I'm glad, but honestly…" she pulled her closer. "There was only one person so important that I needed to save. I didn't expect it to do that much damage, Chariot. If you hadn't come out of there all right… I don't know what I would have done." She grabbed Chariot's hand and kissed them softly, right where her injuries were."

"Don't think about that," Chariot said quickly, pushing a curly lockout of Croix's eyes. "You did what you had to do. Now...just look forward."

Croix let out a deep sigh. Everything everyone had feared over their lifetime would have broken a weaker person, but Chariot was as resilient as steel, and as ever, Croix's pride for her verged on awe.

"I wonder what the witches are going to do with the Manbavaran tome. Should they burn it or should we hand it over to Diana?"

"We've decided to hand it over to Miss Cavendish." An old voice said as she knocked on the door. Croix and Chariot gasped at the sight of Luna Nova's Headmistress visiting the poor girl, "If she ever wakes up after five years."

* * *

 _ **Akko gently**_  held but kept a firm grip at the doll hosting a new soul. She could hear the pitter patter of the little footsteps following her. Salem was a witch's familiar, she was sure with that. But Chloe and Lotte merely raised their brows at her speculation. If she wasn't a familiar, then why the heck was Salem such a convenient pet? Who sent her to Akko as a gift?

The mystery of her cat's origin could wait. For now, she has the biggest problem to worry about.

Akko nodded at the guard positioned outside of the patient's room, then stepped in, staring at the girl lying comatose in the bed.

Diana looked diminished. It wasn't just her exhausted body, or the bandages encasing most of her arms and torso. It was something in her sleeping face, she didn't just look beaten—she looked broken.

Akko stood by helplessly. She had been so focused on trying to find a way to reverse Sucy's curse that she hadn't allowed herself to think about what the adults might tell her about Diana once she got there.

"Akko, you've finally come." The Italian woman began. Her original hair color grew a few inches from the roots. "This is your Headmistress, and local witch doctor, Professor Miranda Holbrook."

"Nice to formally meet you, my dear," Lotte's grandmother extended a hand, and Akko shook it numbly. She took the voodoo doll from Akko's hand and placed Sucy comfortably on the bed beside Diana. "I'm sad to be the bearer of bad news, but the curse Miss Manbavaran placed on Miss Cavendish is irreversible. She is now bound to the new voodoo doll."

Akko grumbled, balling her fists. "How's Diana?"

"Still asleep, and we will monitor her carefully. She's a strong woman."

"Do you want to sit with them?" Detective Inspector Croix said. "I can have someone bring you food."

Akko nodded and collapsed onto the chair next to Diana and Sucy. She curled up next to them, her hand on Diana's chest, feeling her heartbeat under her palm. She listened to her soft breathing, steadier now.

"I take it you weren't able to find anything that can put Miss Manbavaran's soul back to her dead body." Headmistress Holbrook said.

Akko abruptly stood, taking a few staggering steps forward, nostrils flaring and adrenaline coursing through her. "You're supposed to be witches! How are you different to the doctors if magic can't even reverse a spell made by magic!"

"Magic, like actions, is absolute, Miss Kagari. You may not be able to save Sucy Manbavaran or Diana Cavendish, but at least... they are alive."

"Alive?" Akko scoffed. "You must be kidding me!"

"We might wish for a broken teacup to be put back together, but no matter how we wish, it can't. We can try magic; we can try with some adhesive. But the side effects and the long-lasting impression can't be removed or forgotten. They will be forever scarred. This is the best solution we can offer to both of them."

"THEY ARE MORE THAN TEACUPS! TO THINK THAT THEY ARE COMPARABLE TO—"

"Akko, enough!" Chariot yelled. "You've lost your manners."

"This state for the both of them is worse than death! You can't expect them to live like this!"

Chariot put a steadying hand on her shoulder. "It's going to be okay. Sucy is here with us, Diana is alive." Her guardian pulled her into a hug. "You should be proud of what you did for both of them. At least they are alive."

Akko wrapped her arms around Chariot tighter, tears have swelled out of her eyes. "I can't help but feel I made everything worst! I've made everything worst by caring too much!"

"Had you tried extracting Sucy's blood out of her veins?" Detective Inspector Croix asked.

"Like a juice box indeed," Headmistress Holbrook said. "We've been using all the stocks of Diana's blood type to the point of that I dread we have abandoned the other patients who needed them more. I fear that Sucy's DNA is stuck in her like they transplanted Sucy's bone marrow in Diana, continuing to provide her the cursed DNA."

"What do you propose we do?"

"We can surgically remove it in an exceptionally high-risk procedure. In the rare event that the operation is successful, there still would be side effects. We can't guarantee a hundred percent well-being."

"I don't know or care how you intend to make that happen, but you will do whatever it takes, or I swear to god, I will make your life such a living hell!" Akko bellowed.

"Akko, please, your manners!"

The events had taken their toll on Akko. The bits of paranoia and grief that followed weren't surprising.

"In any case, this procedure may or may not help."

* * *

 _ **With one**_  last worried looks from the adults, Chariot and Croix exited the classroom. Akko listened to their footfalls fade into the distance. They left her alone with Diana and Sucy for most of the day. Akko felt strangely numb. For nearly half an hour, she simply stayed where she was, studying the breathing movements of the comatose girl and the doll who suddenly floated midair.

"Sucy?" Akko asked.

The doll nodded. Sucy cannot relay her message in the way Akko can hear, but she knew the Filipino girl was able to hear her.

"Forgiveness is such a profound conscious and unconscious state of affairs. You can't actually choose to do it. It simply happens. Does forgiveness happen to you, to any of you—Sucy?"

"I died. I'm between deaths."

Akko swung her body around to see Lotte watching over the scene from outside the door.

"That's what Sucy said," Lotte added, relaying what she heard. "Mostly, the important among the stream of incorrigible words anyway."

Akko refused to linger her stare at the Finnish girl, but she had so many questions to ask. "Why are you here?"

"I know you're mad at me, Akko." She tiptoed carefully inside. "And I know you'll never forgive me. Chloe made it pretty certain she won't forgive me as well, so I understand any ill will you harbor towards me."

"You understand completely?" Akko almost snorted."Do you? Do you really? If you did what prompt you to tell Sucy where we hid Diana? Diana's your friend too! Why on earth would you let that happen?"

"Would you believe me when I'll say I didn't know?"

"Bitch," she snarled.

"I was trying to be on Sucy's good graces. Because you know," she blushed. "I like her."

With one last scalding glare directed at her, Akko said. "You're despicable."

Lotte scratched the nape of her neck. "I'm sorry."

"You say you practice a little bit of South East Asian magic, but why can't you reverse the curses implanted on both of them?"

"Manbavaran is a form of sorcery that is resistant to the ministrations of Western medicine or Western magic. Only a Mananambal can reverse the effects of such sorcery. You see, Akko, the truth is... the magic is lost. What's left are quack doctors whose magic are filtered and watered down. I say I practice, but I only know the lower tiers of magic. I took a quick look at the Manbavaran tome while surrounding myself with white magic, and found that the spell that cursed Sucy is caused by malignant spirits. Diana's curse is easy to reverse, but would you do so and risk Sucy's life?"

"So the cycle will repeat? Sucy will find a way to mislead one of Diana's descendants and change souls? Is there any other way I can save them? Or at least one of them?"

"What happened with Sinag and Bernadette had been preordained. As was with Sucy and Diana. You cannot simply choose one over the other. You can't merely destroy the doll without killing Diana. And you can't just kill Diana for without her, Sucy will have no human to latch onto and destroying Sucy's soul trapped within."

"You're telling me Loa's soul isn't destroyed when they died?"

"Loa was human before, weren't they? I'm certain the soul of whoever Loa used to go to the purgatory if you believed in that."

"This is unfair! All of this is unfair."

"Akko, if you really need a solid opinion, I believe that you should sacrifice them both."

Akko gasped at her.

"For the greater good of themselves and the future unborn children from Diana's lineage," Lotte added quickly. "Sucy and Diana will die either way. It's just a matter of time. There's no resolution to this. There's no resolution. Except for death."

"And where will I be?"

"Moving on isn't just a distraction. It's a rebuke. The point is, don't blame yourself for what happened to them."

"No," Akko shook her head profusely. "I've got everything backward. I am to blame for what happened to her. If we never met, she would still be alive today. Someone I love was annihilated because of me."

THE END

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd love to personally thank each and every one of who you stayed till the end. Especially those who were here since the beginning. Thank you too for those who read despite the constant pain and angst. I hope your fates will be kinder to you than the characters of this fic.


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